■X  I  B  HAHY 

OF   THE 
U  N  I  VER.SITY 
Of    1LLI  NOIS 


A 


91 7  •  7 

C74n 


I  •  H  •  S  • 


BOdK     FOR     ALL     TRAVELERS. 


ts 


COKCIIK'S  NEW 


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RIVER  GUIDE, 


O  R 


GAZETTEER    OF   ALL    THE   TOWNS 

WESTERN1  WATERS; 


Vfcvr  cf  (.»' -e-ia  Roc*. 

SKETCHES  OF  THE  CITIES,  TOWNS,  AND    COUNTRIES  BORDERING  ON 
AND  MISSISSIPPI  RIVERS,  AND  THEIR  PRINCIPAL  TRIBUTARIES;    TO- 
:EIR    POPULATION,  PRODUCTS,  COMMERCE,  tC,    &C,    IN    1S4S  J 
STING  EVENTS  OF  HISTORY  CONNECTED  WITH  THEM. 

UPILED  FROM  THE  LATEST  AND  BEST  AUTHORITY. 


wit; h  f o rt Yq f o u r  m a p s . 

CINCINNATI,    O.: 
PUBLISHED  BY  GEORGE  '  ONCUN,  NO.  39  MAIN-ST. 

1  S  4  8 . 


*0 


** 


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3 

GEORGE    COICLII, 
BOOKSELLER,  STATIONER, 

AND 

39  IM84I.,  HIE  ilHB&Mj  @m 

Keeps  constantly  on  hand,  and  for  sale,  a  large  assortment  of  LAW 

MEDICAL,  RELIGIOUS,    MISCELLANEOUS    and 

SCHOOL  BOOKS,  of  all  the  various  kinds. 


He  alio  Publishes  the  following  Work*,  tL*.j 

Rollin's  Ancient  History,  2  vols.,  ;  Gallagher's  Watt's  Select  Hymns, 

Life  Blackhawk,  American  Common  School  Primer, 
"    Daniel  Boone,  "  «  «      Reader, 

New  History  Texas  &  Mexican  War,  Primary  do. 

"        "       Oregon  &  California,  Elementary  do. 

First  White  Man  of  the  West,  Hall's  Western  Reader, 

Practical  Farmer,  Gardener,  &c,  j  Map  of  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Rivers, 


Western  Pilot. 


Maps  of  Western  Rivers. 


CONTAINING   SKETCHES   OF  ALL  THE  CITIES  AND  TOWNS  ON  THE  OHIO  AND 

MISSISSIPPI  RIVERS,  AND  THEIR  PRINCIPAL  TRIBUTARIES,  WITH  THEIR 

POPULATION,  PRODUCTS,  COMMERCE,  &C,  AND  MANY  INTEREST- 

INC  EVENTS  OF  HISTORY  CONNECTED  WITH  THEM. 


ALSO,  A 

GENERAL   ASSORTMENT    OF   STATIONERY 

AND 


He  also  manufactures,  and  keeps  constantly  on  hand, 

STEAMBOAT  BOOKS, 

and  Blank  Books,  of  every  description  in  common  use.  He  also  makes 
to  order,  Blank  Books  of  any  pattern,  and  in  a  style  that  will  give 
satisfaction. 


II  E>  RAR.Y 

OF  THE 
UNIVERSITY 
Of    ILLINOIS 


UiHS;S  KWJCAl  SUMH 


A     BOOK     FOR     ALL     TRAVELERS. 


CONCLINS'    NEW 


OR 


A  GAZETTEER    OF   ALL   THE    TOWNS 


ON     THE 


rEP 


STERN   WATERS: 


CONTAINING 

SKETCHES   OF  THE  CITIES,  TOWNS,  AND  COUNTRIES  BORDERING  ON 

THE    OHIO    AND    MISSISSIPPI   RIVERS,  AND  THEIR  PRINCIPAL 

TRIBUTARIES;    TOGETHER  WITH  THEIR  POPULATION, 

PRODUCTS,  COMMERCE,  &C,  &C,  IN    1848;    AND 

MANY  INTERESTING  EVENTS  OF  HISTORY 

CONNECTED   WITH    THEM. 


COMPILED  FROM  THE  LATEST  AND  BEST  AUTHORITY 


WITH    FORTY-FOUR    MAPS. 


CINCINNATI,    O.: 
PUBLISHED  BY  GEORGE  CONCLIN,  NO.  39  MAIN-ST. 

1849. 


TO   THE    PUBLIC 


The  Traveling  community  has  long  demanded  a  book  that  would 
point  out  to  them,  as  they  passed  up  or  down  our  Western  waters, 
the  different  localities,  and  give  some  accurate  account  of  their  his- 
tory, population,  commerce,  pursuits,  &c,  and  the  character  of  the 
country  in  the  interior.  To  supply  this  demand,  the  Publisher  has,  at 
great  labor  and  expense,  collected  the  information  contained  in  the 
following  pages,  and  now  presents  it  to  the  reader,  with  the  hope 
that  it  may  prove  useful  and  interesting. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1848,  by 

GEORGE    CONCLIN, 

In  the  Clerk's  office  for  the  District  Court  of  Ohio. 


CIS  OISSiT  t! 

STBRXOrrPFD  ANI3  PBXKTfc© 

3T 

E.  SHSPAKD, 

Coiunbia  3 1  r  a  e  t . 

"3\  V.  V 
SCENES 


ON 


THE   WESTERN   WATERS. 


THE    OHIO    RIVER 

Is  formed  by  the  union  of  the  Alleghany  and  Monongahela,  at  Pitts- 
burgh. No  river  in  the  world  rolls,  for  the  same  distance,  such  a 
uniform,  smooth  and  placid  current.  Its  banks  are  generally  high 
and  precipitous— rising  into  bluffs  and  cliffs,  sometimes  to  the' height 
of  three  hundred  feet."  Between  these  bluffs  and  the  river,  there  is 
generally  a  strip  of  land,  of  equal  width,  called  botto?n.  These  bluffs 
exhibit  a  wild, a  picturesque  grandeur,  which  those  who  have  never 
viewed  nature  in  her  primitive  and  unspoiled  state,  can  hardly  imag- 
ine. Dense  and  interminable  forests — trees  of  the  most  gigantic  size, 
casting  their  broad  shadows  into  the  placid  stream — the  luxuriant 
and  mammoth  growth  of  the  timber  in  the  bottoms— the  meander- 
ings  and  frequent  bends  of  the  river,  and  the  numberless  beautiful 
wooded  islands,  all  of  which,  in  rapid  succession,  shift  and  vary  the 
scene  to  the  eye.  as  you  float  down  the  endless  maze  before  you,  are 
calculated  to  fix  upon  the  mind  an  indelible  impression. 

Between  Pittsburgh  and  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio,  there  are  one  hun- 
dred considerable  islands,  besides  a  great  number  of  tow-heads  and 
sand-bars.  Some  of  these  islands  are  of  exquisite  beauty,  covered 
with  trees  of  the  most  delicate  foliage,  and  afford  the  most  lovely- 
situations  for  a  retired  residence. 

Tributary  rivers  and  creeks,  to  the  number  of  seventy-five,  emptv 
into  the  Ohio,  between  Pittsburgh  and  its  mouth.  A  number  of  cities 
and  flourishing  towns  are  situated  on  its  banks. 

The  Alleghany  rises  in  the  northern  part  of  Pennsylvania,  flows 
north  into  New  York,  and  thence  south  into  Pennsylvania.  It  is 
navigable  to  Olean,  in  New  York,  and  to  Waterford,  on* French  Creek 
(its  principal  tributary),  fourteen  miles  from  Lake  Erie.  Small  steam- 
boats have  even  ascended  to  Olean,  two  hundred  and  forty  miles 
from  its  mouth.  It  receives  the  waters  of  French  Creek,  Connewon- 
go,  Mahoning,  and  Kiskiminitas.  Much  of  the  country  along  it  is  bro- 
ken and  sterile,  but  abounds  in  inexhaustible  quantities  of  the  finest 
lumber,  which  supply  the  great  demand  of  the  entire  country  below. 
It  is  supposed  that  thirty  million  feet  of  lumber  are  annually'shipped 
from  this  region.     The  river  is  about  400  yards  wide  at  its  mouth. 

■  The  Monongahela  rises  in  the  Alleghany  range,  near  Morgantown, 
Ya..  and  flows  in  a  northwest  direction  to  Pittsburgh.  The  Youghi- 
ogheny  is   its  principal  tributary.     The  country  along  it  presenfs  a 


\  i6£39 


6  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

highly  picturesque  and  beautiful  appearance.  It  is  rich  and  fertile; 
celebrated  for  its  flour,  fruit,  and  whisky,  its  extensive  mines  of  coal 
and  iron,  and  large  iron  manufactories. 

The  Monongahela  has  been  rendered  navigable,  in  all  seasons,  to 
Brownsville,  formerly  called  Red  Stone,  a  distance  of  about  thirty- 
five  miles.  Steamboats  daily  run  to  this  point,  connecting  with  the 
great  stage  route  from  Wheeling  to  Cumberland.  Brownsville  con- 
tains about  1,500  inhabitants.  Bridgeport,  quite  a  flourishing  town 
on  the  opposite  side  of  Dunlap's  creek,  is  connected  with  it  by  a 
bridge. 

In  good  stages  of  water,  the  Monongahela  is  boatable  about  one 
hundred  miles  above  Pittsburgh.  Fourteen  miles  above  Pittsburgh, 
on  the  banks  of  this  river,  was  the  scene  of  Braddock's  defeat  by  the 
Indians,  on  the  9th  of  July,  1755. 

PITTSBURGH,  the  principal  city  of  Western  Pennsylvania,  is 
situated  on  a  point  formed  by  the  junction  of  the  Alleghany  and 
Monongahela  rivers.  It  is  201  miles  west  of  Harrisburgh,  the  capi- 
tal of  the  state,  223  miles  northwest  from  Washington  Cily,  and  297 
miles  west  by  north  from  Philadelphia.  Perhaps  its  site  is  unrivalled 
in  the  world — surrounded  by  inexhaustible  beds  of  iron,  coal.  &c, 
and  with  a  navigation  of  about  fifty  thousand  miles,  which  gives  it 
access  to  the  richest  and  most  fertile  regions  of  the  globe.  Its  early 
history  is  very  interesting.  The  Governor  of  Canada  (then  under 
dominion  of  the  French)  having  formed  the  design  of  connecting 
that  province  with  Louisiana,  by  a  line  of  defenses  extending  from 
the  Lakes  to  the  Mississippi,  had  established  a  post  at  the  mouth  of 
French  Creek,  and  was  about  to  take  possession  of  "the  Forks," 
as  the  site  of  Pittsburgh  was  then  called.  Gov.  Dinwiddie,  of  Vir- 
ginia, dispatched  George  Washington,  in  October,  1753,  to  demand 
of  the  French  commander  his  designs.  On  his  route,  he  stopped  at 
"the  Forks,"  and,  thinking  it  a  proper  place  for  the  erection  of  a  fort, 
communicated  it  to  the  Governor.  The  following  spring,  the  Vir- 
ginia Ohio  company  commenced  erecting  fortifications  on  it.  While 
engaged  in  doing  so,  on  the  17th  of  April,  1754,  Monsieur  de  Contri- 
coeur,  a  French  officer,  arrived  with  three  hundred  canoes,  containing 
one  thousand  French  and  Indians,  and  eighteen  cannon,  and  com- 
pelled them  to  surrender.  This  was  the  commencement  of  the  French 
and  Indian  wars,  which  existed  nine  years.  The  French  gave  to 
the  fort  the  name  of  Fort  Duquesne,  and  occupied  it  until  the  24th 
of  November,  1758,  when  Gen.  Forbes,  of  Pennsylvania,  and  Col. 
George  Washington,  having  marched  against  them,  they  set  fire  to, 
and  evacuated  it.  Gen.  Forbes  took  possession  the  next  day,  and 
called  it  Fort  Pitt,  in  honor  of  the  Earl  of  Chatham.  Little  improve- 
ment was  made  in  it  until  after  the  Revolution.  In  1775,  the  num- 
ber of  houses  did  not  exceed  thirty.  In  1786,  the  first  newspaper 
was  printed  here.  In  1794,  an  insurrection  (commonly  known  as  the 
Whisky  Insurrection)  having  broken  out,  the  Governor  sent  a  large 
number  of  troops  to  quell  it.  Many  of  these  were  so  pleased 
with  the  country,  that,  after  the  period  of  their  services  were  over, 
they  returned  and  settled  here;  and  from  this,  the  city  progressed 


£3 


.*. 


'I 


THE    OHIO    RIVER.  7 

rapidly.  In  1801,  James  Berthone  &  Co..  commenced  the  building 
of  ships,  and  in  three  years,  five  or  six  ships  and  schooners  were  fin- 
ished and  sent  to  sen. 

Pittsburgh  is  now  the  great  mart  for  the  western  part  of  New  York, 
Virginia,  and  Pennsylvania.  It  is  connected  with  Philadelphia  and 
the  Atlantic  cities  by  three  distinct  routes — one  by  way  of  Browns- 
ville— the  Cumberland  Road  and  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad  to  Bal- 
timore, thence  to  Philadelphia  by  Railroad;  another,  by  Turnpike 
over  the  Alleghany  Mountains  to  Chambersburgh,  thence  by  Railroad 
through  Carlisle  and  Harrisburgh  to  Philadelphia;  and  the  third  by 
the  Pennsylvania  Canal  to  Johnstown,  thence  over  the  Mountains  by 
the  Portage  Railroad,  on  ten  inclined  planes,  thence  by  Canal  to  Har- 
risburgh, and  by  Railroad  to  Philadelphia.  The  population  of  the 
city  proper  is  about  forty  thousand.  On  the  opposite  side  of  the  Alle- 
ghany, is  Alleghany  City,  with  a  population  of  about  twenty  thou- 
sand, connected  with  Pittsburgh  by  three  bridges,  a  canal,  and  aque- 
duct. On  the  opposite  side  of  the  Monongahela,  is  Birmingham, 
also  connected  with  the  city  by  a  splendid  bridge.  This  place  has 
a  large  number  of  manufactories,  and  is  rapidly  increasing.  Adjoin- 
ing it  is  a  new  borough  called  South  Pittsburgh.  The  district  within 
five  miles  of  the  center  of  Pittsburgh,  embracing  Alleghany  City, 
Manchester,  Birmingham,  Sligo,  Minersvillc,  East  Liberty,  Scotts- 
field,  South  Pittsburgh,  &c,  is  estimated  to  contain  a  population  of 
one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand. 

The  city  suffered  very  seriously  a  few  years  ago,  by  one  of  the 
largest  conflagrations  that  has  been  known  in  America.  The  fire 
broke  out  on  the  11th  of  April,  1845,  on  the  corner  of  Third  and 
Market  streets,  and  extended  from  thence  to  the  river,  up  the  river  to 
the  upper  end  of  Kensington,  opposite  Birmingham,  down  from  Ken- 
sington to  Fourth-street,  down  Fourth  to  Smithfield,  up  Smithfield 
to  Diamond  Alley,  down  Diamond  Alley  to  the  large  warehouse  on 
Wood-street,  across  Wood,  diagonally,  toward  the  Bank,  up  Fourth 
to  the  Mayor's  office,  and  across  to  Third,  the  place  of  beginning. 
This  district  contains  about  fifty-six  acres — twenty  squares,  and  several 
parts  of  squares — and  one  thousand  brick  buildings,  many  of  them  run- 
ning from  street  to  street.  This  was  the  most  wealthy  and  business 
portion  of  the  city.  Many  large  stores,  foundries,  manufactories, 
dwellings,  churches,  hotels,  and  the  bridge  across  the  Monongahela 
were  entirely  consumed.  It  is  impossible  to  give  any  thing  like  an 
accurate  estimate  of  the  loss  sustained.  The  city  has  now  recovered 
from  it  to  a  great  degree,  and  the  burnt  district  is  fast  being  rebuilt, 
in  a  much  better  style  than  it  ever  was. 

Pittsburgh  is  a  great  manufacturing  city,  and  the  very  extensive 
use  of  stone-coal  in  her  factories,  gives  to  the  place  a  very  dusky  and 
dirty  appearance.  Casting,  and  iron-mongery  of  every  description, 
steam  engines,  cutlery,  nails,  glass,  paper,  wire,  steamboat  building, 
and  many  other  branches  of  manufactures  are  carried  on  here  to  a 
large  extent.  It  has  about  fifty  churches,  a  theological  seminary  and 
university,  an  exchange,  a  number  of  fine  schools,  a  museum,  a  the- 
ater, and  one  of  the  finest  court-houses  in  the  United  States.  There 
is  also  an  arsenal,  consisting  of  an  inclosed  plot  of  thirty-one  acres, 


8  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

containing  a  magazine  of  arms,  a  powder  magazine,  &c.  The  West- 
ern Penitentiary  of  the  state  is  also  located  here.  There  is  also  an 
office  of  the  Telegraph  here,  communicating  with  the  Atlantic,  west- 
ern, and  southern  cities.  The  city  is  supplied  with  water  by  exten- 
sive water-works.  During  the  past  year,  ending  the  1st  ultimo,  fifty- 
six  steamboats  were  built,  their  aggregate  tonnage  being  4,554.  This 
shows  an  increase  over  the  new  tonnage  of  the  previous  year  of 
1,003.  The  total  tonnage  owned  in  Pittsburg  on  the  1st  of  Septem- 
ber last,  amounted  to  27,018  88-94,  and  was  divided  as  follows: 
Steam  tonnage,  21,472  22;  all  other  kinds,  5,546  66.  Total,  27,018 
88-94.  The  value  of  the  property  in  the  county  is  estimated  at 
$19,859,029. 

MIDDLETOWN,  eight  miles  below,  on  the  left,  is  a  small  village 
in  Alleghany  county. 

ECONOMY,  PA.,  eight  miles  below,  on  the  right,  is  a  settlement 
made  by  George  Rapp,  a  German,  who,  with  a  number  of  his  coun- 
trymen, of  the  religious  order  called  Harmonists,  first  settled  in  But- 
ler county,  Pa.  From  thence,  they  all  removed  to  the  Wabash,  and 
built  the  village  of  New  Harmony.  They  numbered,  then,  about 
eight  hundred.  New  Harmony  was  purchased  in  1814  by  Robert 
Owen,  and  Rapp  and  his  followers  established  themselves  at  Econo- 
my. In  1832,  a  number  of  them  seceded  and  joined  Count  Leon, 
who  claimed  to  be  a  special  messenger  sent  from  Heaven  to  establish 
a  Zion  in  the  west.  They  setted  at  Phillipsburgh,  opposite  Beaver, 
but  the  society  soon  went  down.  The  Harmonists  hold  their  prop- 
erty in  common.  They  have  a  number  of  good  mills  here,  and  are 
noted  for  their  industry  and  sobriety.  The  population  of  Economy 
settlement  is  about  one  thousand  four  hundred. 

Mr.  Rapp  died  in  1847,  at  a  very  advanced  age.  He  was  highly 
respected,  and  ably  qualified  for  the  station  he  occupied  as  the  head 
of  this  community. 

FREEDOM,  is  a  small  village  six  miles  below. 

BEAVER,  five  miles  below,  in  Beaver  county,  at  the  mouth  of 
Beaver  River,  is  a  very  thriving  town,  possessing  great  advantages 
from  the  water  power  derived  from  the  Falls  of  Beaver.  A  branch 
of  the  Ohio  Canal  extends  from  Akron,  in  Summit  county,  Ohio,  to 
the  Beaver  division  of  the  Pennsylvania  Canal,  near  Newcastle,  in 
Mercer  county — length,  eighty-eight  miles.  The  Beaver  division  of 
the  Pennsylvania  Canal  runs  from  Beaver  to  the  head  of  slack-water 
navigation  on  the  Shenango — distance,  thirty-one  miles.  Numerous 
mills  and  manufacturing  establishments  are  in  operation  in  and 
around  Beaver,  and  several  small  villages  are  scattered  along  the 
river,  within  a  short  distance  of  it.  Population  of  the  neighborhood 
estimated  at  eight  thousand.  Value  of  property  in  the  county,  four 
millions  four  hundred  thousand  dollars. 

GEORGETOWN,  on  the  left,  fourteen  miles  below,  in  Pennsylva 
nia,  one  mile  above  the  Ohio  line,  is  a  small  village  containing  about 
three  hundred  inhabitants. 


10  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

GLASGOW,  on  the  right,  opposite  Georgetown,  is  a  new  place — 
recently  laid  out.  It  is  the  terminus  of  the  Sandy  and  Beaver  Canal, 
intended  to  connect  the  Ohio  Canal  at  Bolivar,  in  Tuscarawas  county,. 
Ohio,  with  Pittsburgh. 

LIVERPOOL,  forty-eight  miles  below  Pittsburgh,  is  a  pleasant 
village  in  Columbiana  county,  Ohio,  containing  about  six  hundred 
inhabitants.  An  extensive  business  is  carried  on  here  in  the  manu- 
facture of  earthenware. 

WELLSVILLE,  four  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is  the  ter- 
minus of  the  contemplated  railroad,  from  Cleveland,  on  Lake  Erie, 
to  the  Ohio  River — a  distance  of  ninety-seven  miles.  This  town 
was  laid  out  by  Wra,  Wells,  in  1824,  and  now  contains  a  population 
of  about  twelve  hundred.  The  landing  for  steamboats  is  good.  This 
is  an  important  point  for  the  shipment  of  produce — the  surrounding 
country  being  fine  for  agricultural  purposes,  and  the  county  the  best 
in  Ohio  for  wool-growing. 

There  is  an  office  of  the  Telegraph  established  here.  Nearly  opposite 
this  place,  the  well-known  desperate  battle  between  Adam  Poe,  his 
brother,  and  a  party  of  Indians,  is  said  to  have  taken  place ;  and  two 
miles  below,  near  the  mouth  of  Great  Yellow  Creek,  the  locality  of  the 
murder  of  the  family  of  Logan,  the  Mingo  Chief. 

STEUBENVILLE,  nineteen  miles  below,  is  the  eounty-seat  of 
Jefferson  county,  Ohio.  Fort  Steuben  was  erected  here  in  1789,  on 
the  spot  now  occupied  by  the  Female  Seminary.  It  was  guarded  by 
a  company  of  troops  commanded  by  Col.  Beattie.  At  the  period  of 
Wayne's  victory  it  was  deserted. 

Steubenville  is  beautifully  situated  on  an  elevated  plane,  and  con- 
tains a  population  of  about  seven  thousand,  eleven  churches,  five 
public,  and  four  select  schools,  one  male  academy,  and  a  splendid 
female  seminary,  with  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  pupils,  employing 
ten  or  twelve  teachers.  The  building  cost  forty  thousand  dollars. 
There  are  about  thirty  stores,  two  printing-offices,  and  one  daily 
paper.  In  the  town  and  vicinity,  there  are  three  large  flouring 
mills,  a  paper  mill — owned  by  Thompson  Hanna  — one  of  the 
largest  and  best  in  the  western  country,  five  woollen  factories — 
one  of  them  manufacturing  into  cloth  sixty-thousand  pounds  of  wool 
annually — two  cotton,  and  two  glass  manufactories,  three  air  found- 
ries, a  steam  saw-mill,  two  breweries,  and  several  manufactories  of 
copperas  in  the  vicinity — making  about  one  hundred  and  fifty-nine 
tons  per  annum.  The  town  is  in  a  highly  prosperous  condition. 
About  one  thousand  persons  are  employed  in  its  various  factories. 
In  the  neighboring  country,  much  attention  is  paid  to  the  rearing  of 
Merino  and  other  superior  breeds  of  sheep. 

Through  a  great  portion  of  this  region,  there  are  inexhaustible 
beds  of  stone-coal. 

Three  miles  below  Steubenville,  was  the  former  site  of  the  old 
Mingo  Town,  and  residence  of  Logan,  the  celebrated  Indian  chief. 
It  is  now  occupied  as  farms  by  Jeremiah  H.  Hallock,  Esq.,  and  Dan- 
iel Potter. 


PENNSYLVANIA. 


mtltburg 


12  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

WELLSBURGH,  seven  miles  below,  on  the  left,  formerly  called 
Charleston,  is  the  county-seat  of  Brooke  county,  Virginia — three 
hundred  and  seventy -three  miles  from  Richmond,  the  capital  of  the 
state.  It  was  laid  out  in  1789,  and  is  beautifully  situated  on  an  ele- 
vated bank  of  the  river.  It  contains  four  churches,  one  white  flint 
glass  manufactory,  one  glass-cutting  shop,  one  paper  mill,  one  cotton 
factory,  five  large  warehouses,  six  flouring  mills,  one  woollen  factory, 
one  newspaper  printing  office,  one  bank,  and  a  population  of  about 
two  thousand.  The  manufacturing  of  earthern  and  stone  ware  is 
carried  on  here  extensively. 

About  fifty  thousand  barrels  of  flour  are  annually  shipped  from 
this  place  to  New  Orleans  and  other  ports.  It  was  formerly  the  resi- 
dence of  Capt.  Samuel  Brady,  the  famous  Indian  hunter. 

The  land  in  this  county  is  good,  but  very  uneven. 

BETHANY,  eight  miles  east  of  Wellsburgh,  is  the  residence  of 
Dr.  Alexander  Campbell,  founder  of  the  religious  denomination  gen- 
erally known  as  Carnpbellite  Baptists.  There  is  a  flourishing  college, 
established  here  by  Dr.  Campbell,  in  1S41. 

WARRENTON,  sometimes  called  Warren,  seven  miles  below,  in 
Jefferson  county,  Ohio,  is  a  small  village  and  post-town  containing 
about  three  hundred  inhabitants. 

MARTINSVILLE,  eight  miles  below,  in  Belmont  county,  Ohio,  is 
a  flourishing  village,  containing  three  churches,  three  stores,  and 
about  four  hundred  inhabitants. 

WHEELING,  one  mile  below,  and  ninety-seven  miles  below  Pitts- 
burgh, is  the  county-seat  of  Ohio  county,  Virginia.  It  is  two  hun- 
dred and  sixty-four  miles  from  Richmond,  and  three  hundred  and 
fifty-one  from  Washington  city.  It  lies  on  both  sides  of  Wheeling 
Creek,  over  which  there  is  a  beautiful  stone  bridge.  The  city  stands 
on  a  high  bank  of  the  river,  surrounded  by  bold  hills,  in  which  abund- 
ance of  stone-coal  is  found.  It  contains  a  population  of  about  ten  thou- 
sand, has  eleven  churches,  two  academies,  two  banks,  and  a  savings 
institution,  ninety-seven  stores,  seven  commission  houses,  four  iron 
foundries,  four  steam-engine  factories,  eight  glass  houses,  four  woolen 
and  cotton  factories,  two  paper  mills,  four  saw-mills,  three  white  and 
sheet  lead  and  copperas  factories,  two  daily,  one  weekly,  and  one  semi- 
monthly paper,  together  with  many  flourishing  mills  in  its  vicinity. 
A  Telegraph  office  is  established  here.  Wheeling  contains  about 
twelve  hundred  houses.  Over  twenty  steamboats  are  owned  here.  The 
Cumberland  Road  passes  through  it,  and  numerous  stages  leave  every 
day,  for  the  conveyance  of  passengers  to  Cumberland.  It  is  also  a 
depot  for  merchandize  coming  over  the  mountains  by  wagons,  for 
the  western  and  southern  trade.  The  National  Road  from  this  place 
to  Cumberland,  a  distance  of  one  hundred  and  thirty  miles,  is  one 
of  the  greatest  thoroughfares  in  the  Union.  The  mouth  of  Wheeling 
creek  is  celebrated  as  having  been  the  site  of  Fort  Henry,  which  was 
beseiged  in  September,  1777,  by  a  party  of  nearly  five  hundred  Indians, 
led  on  by  the  notorious  Simon  Girty.     It  was  manfully  defended  by 


14  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

only  forty-two  men,  of  whom  twenty-three  were  killed ;  and  the  In- 
dians, after  fighting  all  day,  were  compelled  to  retire  with  a  loss  of 
from  sixty  to  one  hundred. 

Across  the  Ohio,  at  Wheeling,  a  wire  suspension  bridge  is  about 
being  constructed,  which,  when  completed,  will  be  the  greatest  sus- 
pension bridge  in  the  world.  It  will  be  ninety-seven  feet  above  low 
water  mark,  the  floor,  supported  by  twelve  wire  cables,each  one  thou- 
sand three  hundred  and  eighty  feet  long,  and  capable  of  supporting 
a  pressure  of  six  hundred  and  eighteen  pounds  to  the  square  foot. 
Its  entire  cost  is  estimated  at  §210.000. 

BRIDGEPORT,  opposite  Wheeling,  in  Belmont  county,  Ohio,  on 
the  National  Road,  is  a  depot  of  considerable  importance,  from 
which  goods  are  forwarded  through  that  part  of  Ohio  by  the  National 
Road.  It  was  the  scene  of  a  murderous  assault  by  the  Indians  in 
1791,  who  attacked  the  cabin  of  Captain  Joseph  Kirk  wood,  in  which 
ware  the  family  of  Captain  K.,  and  fourteen  soldiers.  The  Indians 
endeavored  to  effect  an  entrance  into  the  cabin,  but,  being  unsuccess- 
ful, piled  brush  around  it,  and  set  it  on  fire.  Seven  of  the  inmates 
were  wounded — one  mortally.  Bridgeport  contains  one  church,  one 
grist,  and  one  saw-mill,  several  stores  and  commission  houses,  and 
about  five  hundred  inhabitants. 

ELIZABETHTOWN,  thirteen  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat 
of  Marshall  county,  Virginia.  It  is  situated  on  the  upper  side  of  Big 
Grave  Creek.  On  the  lower  side  of  the  creek  is  Mounds ville.  United, 
they  contain  a  population  of  about  twelve  hundred.  There  is  here 
one  newspaper  printing  office,  two  stores,  an  academy,  and  a  steam 
flouring  mill. 

BIG  GRATE  CREEK,  at  Elizabelhtown.  affords  some  matter  of 
curiosity  to  the  traveler.  A  short  distance  up  the  creek  is  the  largest 
Indian  mound,  perhaps,  in  the  United  States.  It  is  between  thirty 
and  forty  rods  in  circumference  at  the  base,  and  about  seventy-five 
feet  in  height.  Its  sides  are  covered  with  high  and  aged  trees. 
There  is  an  observatory  on  the  top,  erected  by  Mr.  A.  B.  Tomlinson, 
in  1837.  It  is  well  worthy  a  visit  from  those  who  would  wish  to  view 
one  of  those  singular  remains  of  a  race  Ions:  since  passed  away,  and 
of  whose  history  so  little  can  be  discovered.  The  mound  may  be 
seen  from  steamboats  passing  along  the  river.  Opposite  Grave  Creek, 
in  Ohio,  in  1790,  stood  a  fort  called  Fort  Dillies. 

STEINERV1LLE,  eight  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  Bel- 
mont county.  Ohio,  at  the  mouth  of  Captina  Creek.  Near  this  place 
a  most  bloody  contest  took  place  between  the  Americans  and  Indians, 
in  May,  1794,  known  as  the  battle  of  Captina. 

NEW  MARTINSVILLE,  three  miles  below,  in  Virginia,  at  the 
mouth  of  Fish  Creek,  is  a  small  village  containing  about  two  hun- 
dred inhabitants. 

CLARINGTON,  four  miles  below  is  a  small  village  in  Monroe 
county,  Ohio,  at  the  mouth  of  Sunfish  Creek,  containing  about  three 


Proctors  Bun 


aisoasj. 


OHIO-No.4. 


LI  I      1    Wflsons,  or  3IiJ!Cr  I. 


ST'Ppi, 


Grape  f-  B»t  Ir 


MjJdl«J 


16  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

hundred  inhabitants.  Woodfield,  the  county-seat,  is  eighteen  miles 
in  the  interior.  The  county  is  generally  hilly,  and  the  western  part 
abounds  in  iron  ore  and  coal.  A  large  amount  of  tobacco  is  grown 
here. 

SISTERSVILLE,  twelve  miles  below,  in  Tyler  county,  Virginia, 
was  originally  laid  out  as  the  county-seat,  in  1814,  which  was  sub- 
sequently transferred  to  Middletown,  nine  miles  east.  Sistersville 
contains  a  population  of  about  two  hundred  and  fifty. 

NEWPORT,  twelve  miles  below,  in  Washington  county,  Ohio, 
contains  a  population  of  about  six  hundred  inhabitants,  and  is  quite 
a  thriving"  town. 


o 


MARIETTA,  nineteen  miles  below,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Mus- 
kingum River,  is  the  county-seat  of  Washington  county,  Ohio,  and 
a  place  of  considerable  importance  in  the  history  of  the  state.  Near 
this  spot,  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Muskingum,  at  its  junction  with 
the  Ohio,  the  second  military  post  in  the  state  was  built,  in  the 
autumn  of  1785,  by  a  party  of  troops,  under  the  command  of  Major 
John  Doughty.  They  erected  here  a  fort,  called  Fort  Harmar.  On 
the  7th  of  April,  1788,  a  party  of  forty-seven  men,  under  the  direc- 
tion of  General  Rufus  Putnam,  landed  at  this  point,  having  been 
sent  out  by  the  Ohio  company  to  form  a  permanent  settlement  on  its 
purchase.  This  was  the  first  permanent  settlement  in  Ohio,  and  from 
this  time  her  history  is  generally  dated.  Gen.  St.  Clair,  who  had 
been  appointed  Governor,  not  having  arrived,  temporary  laws  were 
formed  for  the  government  of  the  settlers,  and  published  by  nailing 
to  a  tree.  Return  Jonathan  Meigs  was  appointed  to  execute  them. 
Many  of  these  settlers  were  men  of  high  character;  some  of  them  had 
served  in  the  severe  toils  of  the  Revolution.  Gen.  Washington  said  of 
them,  "There  never  were  men  better  calculated  to  promote  the  welfare 
of  such  a  community."  On  the  2d  of  July,  a  meeting  was  called  on 
the  bank  of  the  Muskingum,  and  the  name  of  Marietta  given  to  the 
place,  in  honor  of  Maria  Antoinette,  Arch-Duchess  of  Austria — the 
beautiful  and  unfortunate  Queen  of  Louis  XVI.  On  the  2d  of  Sep- 
tember, the  first  court  was  organized  with  great  solemnity,  at  Cam- 
pus Martius  Hall  (as  the  stockade  was  calted),  Rufus  Putnam  and 
Benjamin  Tupper,  judges.  A  procession  was  formed  at  the  point  in 
the  following  order:  1.  The  High  Sheriff,  with  his  drawn  sword; 
2.  Citizens;  3.  The  Officers  of  the  Garrison;  4.  Members  of  the 
Bar;  5.  The  Supreme  Judges;  6.  The  Governor  and  Clergy;  7. 
Judges  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas.  A  large  body  of  Indians 
acted  as  spectators.  The  procession  counter-marched  at  the  Hall, 
and  the  Judges  took  their  seats ;  a  prayer  was  then  offered,  and  the 
court  duly  opened.  This  settlement  experienced  great  privations  and 
trials  during  its  early  history,  but  improved  rapidly. 

Marietta  is  built  on  a  level  plot  of  ground,  and  the  greater  part  of 
it  is  liable  to  be  overflowed  by  the  rises  of  the  Ohio."  This  has,  in 
a  great  measure,  injured  its  growth.  The  inhabitants  are  noted  for 
their  morality  and  intelligence.  The  town  contains  seven  churches, 
a  male  and  female  academy,  a  college^  two  public  libraries,  one  bank, 


THE    OHIO    RIVER.  17 

two  printing-offices,  several  manufacturing  establishments,  about 
twenty  stores,  and  two  thousand  five  hundred  inhabitants.  Ship- 
building was  carried  on  here  extensively  between  the  years  1800 
and  1807.  Marietta  was  then  a  "port  of  clearance,"  and  several  ves- 
sels sailed  from  it  to  foreign  countries.  Within  the  last  few  years, 
the  business  has  been  commenced  anew. 

T!  ere  are  still  to  be  seen  here,  numerous  remains  of  ancient  forti- 
ficati  us  and  burial  places. 

HARMAR,  on  the  south  bank  of  the  Muskingum,  opposite  Marietta, 
and  the  original  site  of  Fort  Harmar,  is  a  flourishing  town  of  about 
one  thousand  inhabitants.  The  building  of  steamboats  is  carried  on 
here  to  a  considerable  extent,  and  there  are  also  several  mills  and  manu- 
factories of  different  kinds.  It  is  well  situated  for  a  manufacturing 
town,  as  abundance  of  water  can  be  obtained  from  the  dam  on  the 
Muskingum. 

THE  MUSKINGUM  RIVER  rises  near  the  sources  of  the  Cuy- 
ahoga, of  Lake  Erie,  in  the  southern  part  of  the  Connecticut  Reserve, 
flows  in  a  southeasterly  direction,  and  enters  the  Ohio  at  Marietta. 
It  has  been  made  navigable,  by  means  of  locks  and  dams  and  short 
canals,  to  Dresden,  about  ninety-six  miles  from  Marietta  by  water. 
The  numerous  falls  of  the  Muskingum  afford  water  power  to  almost 
any  extent,  and  most  excellent  advantages  for  manufacturing. 

ZANESVILLE,  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Muskingum,  eighty  miles 
by  water  from  Marietta,  is  the  county-seat  of  Muskingum  county, 
and  one  of  the  principal  towns  in  Ohio.  It  is  connected  with  Put- 
nam, on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  by  a  handsome  bridge.  These 
two  towns,  as  well  as  West  Zanesville,  and  South  Zanesville,  may 
be  considered  as  one  place,  having  a  population  of  about  ten  thou- 
sand. This  place  affords  superior^advantages  for  manufactories  of 
all  kinds.  The  fine  water  power  and  abundance  of  bituminous  coal 
in  its  vicinity,  and  its  great  facilities  for  transportation  and  exporta- 
tion—the National  Road  passing  through  it,  with  its  immense  travel; 
the  Muskingum,  opening  immediate  intercourse  with  the  Ohio  and 
all  the  southern  countries;  the  Ohio  Canal,  reaching  to  the  Lakes  on 
the  north,  and  south  through  the  finest  portions  of  the  state— all 
seem  to  mark  it  out  as  one  of  the  finest  positions  in  the  west  for 
manufacturing  purposes. 

There  are  already  about  thirty  manufactories,  of  different  kinds, 
established  here.  The  town  is  well  supplied  with  all  the  facilities 
for  a  large  city,  and  ranks  high  for  its  intelligence  and  morality. 
Much  attention  is  paid  to  education,  and  there  are  numerous  schools 
for  males  and  females  in  it. 

In  its  neighborhood,  salt  water  of  a  good  quality  is  found  by  boring. 
The  manufacture  of  this  article  was  formerly  carried  on  here  largely, 
but  has  latterly  declined,  on  account  of  the  great  quantities  manu- 
factured at  Kanawha,  Va. 

VIENNA,  six  miles  below  Marietta,  is  a  small  village  in  Virginia, 
nearly  opposite  an  island  of  the  same  name. 


18  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

PARKERSBURGH,  seven  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Wood 
county,  Virginia.  It  is  situated  at  the  mouth  of  the  Little  Kanawha 
River.  Jt  is  a  place  of  considerable  business  and  enterprise,  contains 
lour  churches,  one  printing-office,  one  bank,  nine  stores,  two  steam 
saw,  and  two  steam  flouring  mills,  two  tanneries,  and  one  carding 
factory.  Population  about  three  thousand.  It  is  connected  with 
Winchester,  Virginia,  by  a  turnpike — distance  about  two  hundred 
and  sixty  miles.  Great  efforts  are  being  made  to  extend  the  Balti- 
more and  Ohio  Railroad  to  this  point. 

BELPRE,  opposite  Parkersburgh,  is  a  beautiful  settlement,  extend- 
ing some  ten  or  twelve  miles  along  the  river. 

BLANNERHASSETT'S  ISLAND,  two  miles  below,  is  a  beauti- 
ful island,  celebrated  as  having  been  the  residence  of  Herman  Blan- 
nerhasset,  an  Irish  emigrant  of  distinction,  who,  about  the  year  1798, 
commenced  improving  it,  and  built  a  splendid  mansion,  the  ruins  of 
which  are  still  to  be  seen.  He  expended  a  large  sum  of  money  in- 
decorating  his  mansion  and  laying  out  pleasure  grounds  with  great 
taste  and  elegance.  His  lady  was  a  highly  accomplished  woman, 
and  his  house  was  the  resort  of  the  most  literary  and  refined  society. 
When  Aaron  Burr  was  projecting  .his  famous  expedition,  he  called 
on  Blannerhasset,  induced  him  to  join  in  the  conspiracy,  and  embark 
all  his  wealth  in  the  scheme.  They  were  detected,  arrested,  and 
tried  for  treason.  Although  not  convicted,  Blannerhasset  was  ruined. 
His  splendid  mansion  was  deserted  and  went  to  decay,  his  pleasure- 
grounds  overrun  with  brush  and  weeds,  and  the  Island  now  presents 
nothing  but  a  mass  of  ruins.  Wirt  has  rendered  this  spot  almost 
classic  ground,  by  his  thrilling  eloquence  at  the  trial  of  Burr  and 
Blannerhasset.  After  years  of  wandering,  Blannerhasset  died,  in 
1822,  on  the  Island  of  Guernsey.  His  wife  subsequently  returned 
to  the  United  States,  and  endeavored  to  obtain  some  indemnification 
from  Government  for  their  losses,  but  without  effect.  She  died  in 
New  York  in  1842. 

TROY,  or  Hockingsport,  twelve  miles  below,  in  Athens  county, 
Ohio,  is  a  small  village  at  the  mouth  of  the  Hockhocking  River,  con- 
taining three  stores,  and  about  two  hundred  inhabitants. 

THE  HOCKHOCKING  RIVER  rises  in  Fairfield  county,  Ohio, 
winds  through  a  hilly  country  about  eighty  miles,  and  enters  the 
Ohio  River  at  Troy.  The  name  of  the  river  is  that  given  to  it  by 
the  Delaware  Indians,  a  signifies  a  bottle. 

This  river  is  navigable  for  small  crafts  to  Athens,  the  county-seat. 
Seven  miles  northwest  of  Lancaster,  it  falls  over  a  stratum  of  rocks, 
about  forty  feet  perpendicular.  Above  the  falls,  it  resembles  a  bottle, 
in  shape,  which  probably  gave  rise  to  the  name.  The  whole  coun- 
try along  it  is  full  of  wild  and  picturesque  scenery.  Numerous  an- 
cient mounds  and  fortifications  are  found  north  of  Athens,  some  of 
them  built  of  stone — differing  entirely  from  any  found  in  the  vicinity. 
Some  of  them  are  of  an  extraordinary  size;  in  one  was  found  a 
thousand  perch  of  stone,  out  of  which  a  dam  was  constructed  across 


Big  Uockhocking  R 


20  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

the  river.     The  lower  part  of  this  valley  abounds  in  yellow  pine. 
In  1840,  92,800  bushels  of  salt  were  manufactured  in  this  county. 

At  Athens,  there  is  a  flourishing  University  endowed  with  two 
towships  of  land. 

BELLVILLE,  four  miles  below  Troy,  in  Wood  county,  Va.,  at 
the  mouth  of  Lee's  Creek,  was  settled  in  1785,  by  a  party  of  emi- 
grant from  Pittsburgh,  under  the  direction  of  Joseph  Wood,  Esq. 
In  1786,  extensive  blockhouses,  surrounded  by  pickets,  were  erected, 
to  prevent  the  incursions  of  the  Indians,  from  whom  the  settlers  suf- 
fered severely.  It  was  the  scene  of  many  tragical  events,  which  are 
detailed  in  the  Hesperian,  of  1838,  by  Dr.  Hildreth,  of  Marietta.  It  is 
now  a  small  village,  built  on  a  high,  dry  bottom,  very  fertile  and 
beautiful. 

MURRAYS VILLE,  five  miles  below,  in  Virginia.  The  business 
of  steamboat  building  has  recently  been  commenced  here  to  a  limited 
extent. 

SHADE  RIVER,  one  mile  below,  on  the  Ohio  side,  is  a  small 
stream  which  empties  in  the  Ohio  here.  Its  mouth  was  formerly 
called  the  "Devil's  Hole."  This  marked  the  point  at  which  the 
Scioto  Indians  usually  crossed  the  Ohio,  after  their  predatory  incur- 
sions in  Virginia. 

RAVENSWOOD,  eleven  miles  below,  in  Jackson  county,  Va.,  was 
laid  out  about  ten  years  ago,  and  is  now  a  pretty  brisk  village,  of 
about  three  hundred  and  fifty  inhabitants,  two  churches,  two  school- 
houses,  three  stores,  one  large  saw  and  grist  mill.  A  large  number 
of  flat-boats  are  built  here,  for  transporting  produce  to  the  different 
points  below.  The  country  is  hilly,  but  generally  very  productive. 
It  is  very  finely  calculated  for  a  grazing  country,  and  many  sheep  and 
cattle  are  raised  here.  Ripley,  the  county-seat,  is  twelve  miles  in  the 
interior. 

LETARTSVILLE,  twenty-three  miles  below,  is  a  small  town  in 
Meiws  county,  Ohio.  It  is  situated  just  at  the  falls,  and  at  the  foot 
of  the  Island  bearing  that  name. 

C4RAHAM'S  STATION,  six  miles  below,  in  Meigs  county— a 
small  place,  containing  fifteen  or  twenty  houses,  and  about  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty  inhabitants. 

POMEROY,  eight  miles  below,  the  county-seat  of  Meigs  county,  O., 
is  a  flourishing  town,  and  the  principal  point  of  business  for  the  coal  re- 
gion. It  was  first  settled  in  1816,  and  the  coal-mines  opened  in 
1832.  In  1S41,  Pomeroy  was  made  the  county-seat.  It  is  situ- 
ated on  a  narrow  strip  of  land,  running  some  distance  along  the 
river.  Immediately  back  of  it  is  a  rough,  precipitous  hill,  and 
the  country  in  the  interior  is  wild  and  romantic.  It  abounds  with 
stone-coal  of  a  good  quality,  and  an  extensive  business  is  carried  on 
in  that  article.  The  most  of  the  coal-land  for  four  miles  along  the 
river  is  owned  by  the  family  of  the  late  Samuel  W.  Pomeroy.     The 


THE   OHIO    RIVER.  21 

company  employ  about  three  hundred  hands,  and  a  large  number 
of  flat-boats  for  (he  transportation  of  their  coal,  of  which  they  dug 
during  tire  last  year  about  two  millions  of  bushels.  The  business 
is  also  carried  on  by  several  others  in  the  vicinity,  to  an  extent, 
combined,  of  about  100,000  bushels  annually.  Pomeroy  contains 
a  good  court-house,  six  churches,  one  printing-office,  fifteen  stores,  two 
foundries,  one  flour,  and  two  saw-mills,  two  carding-machines,  three 
machine-shops,  one  rolling-mill,  one  rope-walk,  and  two  large  tan- 
neries. Ten  steam-engines  are  employed  here.  Population,  about 
two  thousand. 

COALPORT,  one  mile  below,  is  the  principal  mining  point  of  the 
Pomeroy  company.  Railways  are  here  built  for  the  purpose  of  run- 
ning down  the  coal  from  the  mines  to  boats  in  the  river.  The  mining 
is  mostly  done  by  natives  of  Wales,  who  have  been  accustomed  to  the 
business  from  youth. 

MIDDLEPORT,  just  below  Coalport,  has  been  laid  out  but  a  few 
years,  but  is  rapidly  increasing-.  These  towns  owe  their  increase 
to  the  coal  trade,  which  is  becoming  here  more  extensive  every 
year. 

SHEFFIELD   adjoins    Middleport,   and   is   flourishing  rapidly. 

POINT  PLEASANT,  twelve  miles  below,  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Great  Kanawha  River,  is  the  county-seat  of  Mason  county,  Virginia. 
It  is  the  site  of  the  bloodiest  battle  ever  fought  with  the  Indians  in 
Virginia— the  "Battle  of  Point  Pleasant''— on  the  10th  of  October, 
1774,  when  about  eleven  hundred  Americans,  under  the  command 
of  Col.  Lewis,  were  attacked  by  a  large  body  of  Indian  warriors, 
comprising  the  flower  of  the  Shawanee,  Delaware,  Mingo,  Wyan- 
dotte and  Cayuga  tribes,  led  on  by  that  famous  warrior,  Cornstalk. 
The  battle  continued  all  day,  when,  about  sundown,  the  Indians  find- 
ing themselves  about  to  be  completely  surrounded  by  different  detach- 
ments of  the  army,  retreated  across  the  Ohio,  to  their  towns  on  the 
Scioto.  The  Virginia  army  sustained  a  loss  of  seventy-five  killed, 
and  one  hundred  and  forty  wounded.  From  the  facility  with  which 
the  Indians  carry  off  their  dead,  it  was  impossible  to  ascertain  their 
loss.  The  bodies  of  thirty-seven  were,  however,  found  the  next 
morning.  A  fort  was  erected  at  the  mouth  of  the  Kanawha  after  the 
battle. 

Cornstalk  was  murdered  at  Point  Pleasant  in  the  summer  of  1777. 
A  reward  was  offered  by  the  Governor  for  the  apprehension  of  the 
murderers,  but  without  effect. 

Point  Pleasant  contains  two  churches,  three  stores,  a  court-house, 
one  steam  flour  and  one  steam  saw-mill,  two  tanneries,  and  about 
four  hundred  inhabitants. 

THE  GREAT  KANAWHA  RIVER,  is  the  principal  river  of 
Western  Virginia.  It  rises  in  the  Alleghany  mountains,  and,  after 
winding  through  a  highly  picturesque  and  mountainous  region,  enters 
the  Ohio  at  Point  Pleasant.     It  has  been  made  navigable  for  small 


22  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

steamboats,  by  deepening  the  channel,  to  the  Kanawha  Salines — a 
distance  of  sixty  miles  from  its  mouth — where  are  found  the  most 
extensive  salines  in  the  western  country.  The  water  is  found  by 
boring  from  one  to  two  thousand  feet,  when  it  gushes  up,  frequently 
to  the  height  of  twenty  feet  above  the  ground,  in  many  places  ac- 
companied by  a  gas  which  burns  with  a  clear,  brilliant  flame,  and  is 
a  great  assistance  in  manufacturing  the  salt.  The  water  is  very 
strongly  impregnated  with  salt,  and  is  evaporated  principally  by  a 
steam  process.  The  quantity  manufactured  annually  is  about  three 
millions  of  bushels,  supplying  most  of  the  demand  in  the  west. 

The  scenery  along  the  Kanawha  is  unsurpassed  by  any  in  the 
west.  From  the  mouth  of  the  river  to  Charleston,  the  county-seat  of 
Kanawha  county — a  distance  of  fifty-five  miles— it  is  pleasingly  va- 
riegated by  fertile  fields  and  rough  mountain  landscapes.  Above  the 
salines,  the  river  is  broken  by  falls,  and  the  country  becomes  more 
mountainous.  .In  the  neighborhood  of  the  falls  are  many  places  of 
great  interest.  Among  others,  the  "Hawk's  Nest,"  or,  as  it  has  some- 
times been  called,  "Marshall's  Pillar,-'  a  bold,  projecting  mountain 
peak,  that  rises  to  the  distance  of  one  thousand  feet  above  the  river. 
It  is  much  frequented  by  visitors,  and  well  worthy  of  a  visit 
by  all. 

GALLIPOLIS,  four  miles  below  Point  Pleasant,  is  the  county-seat 
of  Gallia  county,  Ohio.  It  is  pleasantly  situated  on  a  high  bank — 
ten  feet  above  the  flood  of  1832.  It  was  originally  settled  in  1791, 
by  a  party  of  French  emigrants,  many  of  whose  descendants  yet  re- 
side here.  For  some  few  years  back,  it  has  been  improving  consid- 
erably, and  is  a  forwarding  point  for  a  great  deal  of  produce.  It 
contains  three  churches,  two  newspaper  printing-offices,  about  four- 
teen stores,  and  a  population  of  near  eighteen  hundred. 

MILLERSPORT,  twenty-five  miles  below  Gallipolis,  is  a  small 
village  in  Lawrence  county,  Ohio,  containing  four  stores,  fifteen  or 
twenty  houses,  and  about  one  hundred  and  twenty  inhabitants. 

GUYANDOTTE,  thirteen  miles  below  Millersport,  in  Cabell 
county,  Virginia,  is  the  most  important  point  of  steamboat  embarka- 
tion in  Western  Virginia,  except  Wheeling.  The  great  stage  route 
along  the  Kanawha  to  Winchester  commences  here.  It  is  a  flourish- 
ing place,  containing  about  eight  hundred  inhabitants.  Numerous 
remains  of  a  former  race  of  inhabitants — bones,  arrows,  stone  axes, 
etc. — are  found  all  around  it. 

PROCTORSVILLE,  a  small  village  in  Ohio,  nearly  opposite  Guy- 
andotte. 

BURLINGTON,  eight  miles  below,  is  a  small  village,  and  the 
county-seat  of  Lawrence  county,  Ohio.  It  contains  a  court-house, 
four  stores,  two  churches,  and  about  four  hundred  inhabitants.  Law- 
rence county  is  in  the  midst  of  the  iron  region  of  Ohio.  The  three 
neighboring  counties — Scioto,  Jackson,  and  Greenup — in  Kentucky, 
make  annually  about  thirty-eight  thousand  tons  of  pig  iron,  which 


Belleville  1. 


j  ml  \i} 


24  THE   OHIO    RIVER. 

commands  a  good  price.     There  are  twenty-one  furnaces  in  this  re- 
gion, employing  about  two  thousand  persons. 

BIG  SANDY  RIVER,  four  miles  below,  on  the  left,  forms  the 
boundary  between  Virginia  and  Kentucky,  for  nearly  two  hundred 
miles.  It  rises  in  the  Alleghany  mountains,  near  the  heads  of  Cum- 
berland and  Clinch,  and  is  navigable  for  light  crafts  to  the  mountains. 
Just  below  its  mouth  stands  the  small  village  of  Catlettsburgh. 

HANGING  ROCK,  thirteen  miles  below,  in  Lawrence  county, 
Ohio,  derives  its  name  from  a  cliff  of  rocks  about  four  hundred  feet 
high,  which  projects  over  the  rear  of  the  town.  It  is  the  principal 
shipping  point  for  the  iron  manufactured  in  that  region.  It  has  one 
church,  four  stores,  one  forge,  a  rolling  mill,  a  foundry,  and  a  popu- 
lation of  about  two  hundred.  They  are  about  connecting  the  difler- 
ent  mines  with  this  point  by  means  of  railroads. 

GREENUPSBURGH,  six  miles  below,  on  the  left,  is  the  county- 
seat  of  Greenup  county,  Kentucky.  It  is  situated  at  the  mouth  of 
Little  Sandy  River,  and  contains  a  court-house,  one  church,  fourteen 
stores  and  groceries,  and  a  population  of  about  three  hundred. 

WHEELERSBURGH,  eight  miles  below,  in  Scioto  county,  Ohio, 
is  a  flourishing  town,  with  a  population  of  three  hundred. 

SPRINGVILLE,  in  Greenup  county,  Kentucky,  opposite  Ports- 
mouth, contains  a  foundry,  several  manufactories,  and  a  population 
of  one  hundred  and  thirty.  This  county  abounds  in  fine  beds  of 
iron  ore,  of  an  excellent  quality.  There  are  ten  blast  furnaces  in 
operation  in  it. 

PORTSMOUTH,  twelve  miles  below  Wheelersburgh,  the  county- 
seat  of  Scioto  county,  is  situated  on  a  high  bank,  on  the  upper  side 
of  the  mouth  of  the  Scioto  River,  and  at  the  terminus  of  the  Ohio 
Canal.  It  is  ninety  miles  south  of  Columbus,  the  capital  of  the  state. 
The  canal  here  enters  the  river,  uniting  the  waters  of  Lake  Erie, 
after  a  passage  of  three  hundred  and  seven  miles,  with  the  Ohio, 
thus  affording  a  grand  communication,  by  means  of  the  lake  and  the 
New  York  Canal,  with  all  the  northern  states.  The  country  along 
the  canal  is  one  of  the  most  fertile  in  the  west.  In  passing  along  it, 
one  cannot  but  be  struck  with  the  extensive  corn-fields  and  finely 
cultivated  farms  extending  for  miles  into  the  interior  of  the  valley. 
With  this  great  agricultural  region,  and  the  immense  chain  of  com- 
munication with  different  parts  of  the  country,  Portsmouth  must  be 
a  point  of  considerable  importance.  A  vast  deal  of  business  is  trans- 
acted there  now,  and  the  town  is  in  a  flourishing  condition.  It  con- 
tains four  churches,  a  fine  court-house,  seventeen  stores,  one  rolling, 
one  flour,  and  one  oil  mill,  one  carding  machine,  one  forge,  and  two 
foundries.  A  large  basin,  with  dry-docks,  is  being  built  on  the  op- 
posite side  of  the  Scioto,  for  the  building  and  repairing  of  steamboats. 
The  population  of  Portsmouth  is  about  three  thousand  five  hun- 
dred. 


j  mace 
KENTUCKY 


26  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

THE  SCIOTO  RIVER,  which  here  enters  the  Ohio  River,  rises 
in  the  northern  part  of  the  state,  and  runs  in  a  southeast  direction 
nearly  two  hundred  miles  to  its  mouth.  It  is  navigable  for  fiatboats, 
in  high  stages,  one  hundred  and  thirty  miles.  In  the  spring  of  1848, 
a  steamboat  arrived  within  six  miles  of  Chillicothe  (which  is  forty- 
five  miles  above  Portsmouth),  and  means  are  now  being  put  into 
operation  to  make  the  steamboat  navigation  to  Chillicothe  permanent. 

CHILLICOTHE,  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Scioto,  is  a  place  of 
considerable  importance  in  the  state.  It  was  first  laid  out  in  1796. 
In  1S00,  the  seat  of  Government  was  removed  from  Cincinnati  to  it, 
where  it  remained  until  1816,  when  Columbus  was  made  the  per- 
manent capital.  Chillicothe  is  the  principal  point  of  trade  for  the 
great  Scioto  valley.  It  contains  a  court-house,  thirteen  churches,  two 
academies,  forty-nine  stores,  eight  forwarding  houses,  five  weekly 
newspapers,  four  flouring  mills,  manufacturing  ten  thousand  barrels 
of  flour  annually,  four  pork  houses,  packing  about  forty-five  thousand 
barrels  of  pork  annually,  and  a  population  of  six  thousand  five  hun- 
dred. The  Ohio  Canal  passes  through  it.  There  are  many  remains 
of  ancient  mounds  and  fortifications  in  its  vicinity. 

COLUMBUS,  the  capital  of  the  state,  stands  on  the  east  bank  of 
the  Scioto,  ninety  miles  above  Portsmouth  by  land.  There  is  a 
branch  of  the  Ohio  Canal  extending  to  it;  the  National  Road,  also, 
passes  through  it,  and  a  turnpike  leading  to  the  lakes.  The  railroad 
from  Cincinnati  to  Sandusky,  on  the  lake,  is  within  thirty  miles  of 
it,  and  it  is  in  contemplation  to  build  a  branch  to  Columbus.  The 
present  site  of  the  city  was,  in  1812,  an  unbroken  forest.  It  now 
contains  a  population  of  about  eleven  thousand.  It  is  laid  out  regu- 
larly, with  wide  streets,  and  adorned  with  many  beautiful  buildings. 
The  public  buildings  are  constructed  on  a  magnificent  scale,  and  do 
honor  to  the  state.  They  are  a  lunatic  asylum,  an  asylum  for  the 
blind,  one  for  the  deaf  and  dumb,  and  the  Ohio  penitentiary.  Co- 
lumbus has  seventeen  churches,  a  fine  court-house,  a  very  shabby 
old  state-house,  two  flourishing  academies,  a  Lutheran  theological 
seminary,  six  weekly  and  two  tri-weekly  newspapers,  one  monthly 
and  one  semi-monthly  periodical,  and,  during  the  sessions  of  the 
legislature,  two  daily  newspapers. 

ROCKVILLE,  seventeen  miles  below  Portsmouth,  in  Scioto  county, 
Ohio,  has  a  few  houses,  one  store,  and  a  large  mill. 

VANCEBURGH,  two  miles  below,  in  Lewis  county,  Kentucky,  is 
a  small  village,  containing  three  stores,  several  mechanical  shops,  and 
a  population  of  one  hundred  and  fifty.  There  is  a  good  bed  of  cop- 
peras near  thisplace,  a  fine  lime-stone  quarry,  and  clay  suitable  for 
making  fire-brick  and  stone-ware.  A  few  miles  in  the  interior  are 
the  Esculapian  Springs,  which  have  recently  become  a  celebrated  wa- 
tering-place. 

ROME,  seven  miles  below,  in  Ohio,  is  a  small  place,  containing 
five  or  six  houses. 


Portsmouth 
gcioto  B. 


28  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

CONCORD,  seven  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  Lewis  county, 
Kentucky,  containing  one  church,  four  stores,  and  a  population  of 
one  hundred  and  twenty-five. 

MANCHESTER,  seven  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  Adams 
county,  Ohio;  population  about  two  hundred  and  fifty.  The  first 
settlement  within  the  Virginia  military  district  was  made  at  this 
point,  in  1 795,  by  Gen.  Nathaniel  Massie.  It  was  formerly  the  county- 
seat  of  Adams  county ;  but  in  1S03,  West  Union,  eight  miles  in  the 
interior,  became  it.  There  are  said  to  be  fine  beds  of  iron  in  the 
eastern  part  of  this  county.     The  land  is  generally  broken  and  hilly. 

MAYSYILLE,  twelve  miles  below,  is  in  Mason  county,  Kentucky 
It  v/as  for  many  years  known  as  "Limestone,"  from  the  creek  of  that 
name  which  there  enters  the  Ohio.  It  was  settled  in  1784,  under 
the  auspices  of  Simon  Kenton,  who  had  land  there  several  years  be- 
fore. Col.  Daniel  Boone  resided  here  in  1786.  Maysville  stands  on 
a  high  bank,  and  presents  quite  a  beautiful  appearance  from  the 
river.  It  is  surrounded  by  high  hilis,  which  come  to  the  edge  of  the 
city.  From  its  exposed  condition,  its  growth,  was  for  a  long  time 
retarded.  Its  great  improvement  may  be  dated  from  1815.  It  is  the 
great  depot  for  goods  intended  for  the  northeastern  part  of  the  state. 
The  great  road  leading  from  Chillicothe,  in  Ohio,  to  Lexington,  the 
capital  of  Kentucky,  passes  through  here.  Maysville  was  incorpo- 
rated in  1833.  It  is  a  well-built  city,  containing  a  number  of  fine 
edifices.  There  is  a  beautiful  city-hall,  six  churches,  two  seminaries, 
two  public  schools,  seven  private  schools,  a  hospital,  a  bank,  two 
printing-offices,  each  publishing  tri-weekly  and  weekly  papers,  two 
steam  cotton  factories,  one  bagging  factory,  a  wool-carding  factory, 
two  foundries,  five  rope  walks,  two  steam  saw  mills,  a  large  flouring 
mill,  and  divers  other  factories;  forty-four  groceries,  twenty-five  dry 
goods  stores,  twelve  stores  for  the  sale  of  various  other  articles,  three 
pork-houses  (at  which,  in  1847-8,  eleven  thousand  hogs  were  packed), 
four  lumber  yards,  &c.  Population  five  thousand.  It  has  recently 
been  made  the  seat  of  Justice  for  the  countv. 

LEXINGTON,  Kentucky,  sixty-four  miles  southwest  from  Mays- 
ville, in  the  interior  of  the  state,  is  the  county-seat  of  Fayette  county, 
and  a  place  of  considerable  note.  It  was  founded  in  1776,  and  a 
blockhouse  erected  in  1779  to  prevent  the  incursions  of  the  Indians. 
It  was  for  several  years  the  capital  of  the  state.  It  is  a  beautifully 
situated  town,  and  adorned  with  many  fine  buildings.  Transylvania 
University,  of  which  Rev.  Henry  B.  Bascom,  D.  D.,  is  President,  is 
situated  here.  There  is  a  literary,  medical,  and  law  department  con- 
nected with  it,  all  in  a  flourishing  condition.  The  university  is  well 
furnished  with  fine  libraries  and  museums,  for  instruction  in  the  dif- 
ferent departments.  There  is  also  a  splendid  lunatic  asylum,  which, 
in  architectural  adornments,  and  all  its  operations,  reflects  great  credit 
on  the  state.  In  the  city  and  county,  the  manufacturing  of  hemp  is 
carried  on  very  extensively,  making,  annually,  upwards  of  4,000,000 
yards  of  bagging,  and  about  3,500,000  pounds  of  rope.  Population 
about  nine  thousand. 


%ftQ.* 


•f-  Maysvill* 


w0-** 


30  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

ASHLAND,  the  residence  of  Henry  Clay,  is  a  mile  and  a  half 
southeast  of  Lexington. 

ABERDEEN,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river  from  Maysville,  in 
Brown  county,  Ohio,  is  a  pretty  thriving  village,  containing  a  popu- 
lation of  six  hundred.  It  is  noted  as  being  the  "Gretna  Green"  of 
Ohio,  where  a  worthy  gentleman  stands  ever  ready  to  tie  the  knot  hy- 
menial  without  asking  questions,  for  all  who  may  apply  for  his  services. 

CHARLESTON,  seven  miles  below,  in  Kentucky,  is  a  small  vil- 
lage containing  a  few  houses. 

RIPLEY,  two  miles  below,  in  Brown  county,  Ohio,  is  one  of  the 
most  flourishing  villages  on  the  Ohio  River.  It  was  laid  out  in  1812, 
and  first  called  Staunton.  It  contains  six  churches,  twenty  stores, 
one  newspaper  printing-office,  three  flouring  mills,  one  foundry,  one 
warding  machine,  and  two  thousand  inhabitants. 

LAV  ANA,  two  and.  a-half  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  tne 
same  county. 

DOVER,  opposite  Lavana,  in  Mason  county,  Kentucky,  is  a  thriv- 
ing village,  in  the  center  of  the  tobacco  region.  It  contains  two 
churches,  six  stores,  three  tobacco  warehouses,  one  grist,  and  one  saw 
mill,  and  a  population  of  five  hundred.     It  is  a  place  6*f  considerable 

business. 

H1GGINSPORT,  four   miles  below,  in  Brown  county.  Ohio,  is  a 
flourishing  village  that  has  sprung  up  within  a  few  years.     It  has 
several  churches  and  stores,  one  grist,  and  one  saw  mill,  and  a  pop 
ulation  of  about  five  hundred. 

AUGUSTA,  four  miles  below,  in  Bracken  county,  Kentucky,  is  a 
beautifully  situated  and  pleasant  town.  There  is  a  college  here,  un- 
der the  control  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  which  bears  a 
high  reputation.  It  has  usually  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  students. 
Augusta  contairWa  fine  college  edifice,  three  churches,  a  large  steam 
saw  and  grist  mill,  ten  stores  and  groceries,  and  three  tobacco  ware- 
houses. Population  twelve  hundred.  The  bottom  on  which  the 
town  stands,  has  evidently  been  a  large  burial  ground  of  an  ancient 
race.  Scarcely  a  post-hole  can  be  dug  without  turning  up  human 
bones.  Gold  has  been  found  in  the  county;  and  it  is  believed,  by 
those  who  have  examined,  that  it  might  be  found  in  great  quantities. 

Brookville,  the  seat  of  justice  of  the  county,  is  nine  miles  in  the 
interior. 

ROCKSPRING,  is  a  landing  point,  three  and  a-half  miles  below. 

CHILO,  or  MECHANICSBURGH,  opposite  Rockspring,  is  a  small 
village  in  Ohio. 

NEVILLE,  three  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  of  considerable 
enterprise,  in  Clermont  county,  Ohio,  containing  a  population  of  three 


THE    OHIO    RIVER.  31 

hundred  and   fifty,     Batavia  is  the  county-seat,  sixteen  miles  in  the 
interior. 

MOSCOW,  two  miles  below  Neville,  is  a  village  of  about  the  same 
size. 

POINT  PLEASANT,  three  miles  below,  a  village  in  the  same 
county,  population  two  hundred.  There  are  two  large  pork-packing 
establishment  here. 

BELMONT,  opposite,  in  Kentucky,  is  a  small  place. 

NEW  RICHMOND,  five  miles  below,  in  Clermont  county.  Ohio, 
is  a  town  of  considerable  importance,  doing  a  business  which  is,  per- 
haps, not  equalled  by  any  other  town  of  its  size  in  the  West.  It  con- 
tains three  churches,  five  stores,  and  a  very  large  distillery,  and  a 
population  of  about  one  thousand.  A  few  miles  in  the  interior,  is  a 
flourishing  Seminary,  under  the  charge  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Parker. 

PALESTINE,  four  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is  a  small 
village  of  considerable  business.  A  large  number  of  lots  have  been 
laid  out,  and  sold  here  during  the  present  year  (1848),  and  Mr.  Jos. 
Budd  has  established  one  of  the  largest  brick  yards  in  the  West. 
The  brick  are  made  by  machinery  and  shipped  to  Cincinnati  by  flat 
boats.     The  population,  is  about  three  hundred. 

THE  LITTLE  MIAMI  RIVER  enters  the  Ohio,  about  fifteen 
miles  below  New  Richmond,  and  six  miles  above  Cincinnati.  This 
is  one  of  the  principal  rivers  in  Ohio.  It  flows  through  a  very  fer- 
tile country,  adorned  with  fine  farms.  There  are  upwards  of  fifty 
mill-seats  on  its  banks.  In  the  neighborhood  of  Yellow  Springs, 
about  seventy  miles  from  its  mouth,  is  a  place  called  "Clifton,"  which 
affords  some"  of  the  most  beautiful  scenery  in  the  west.  Here  the 
river,  in  the  distance  of  a  few  miles,  falls  two  hundred  feet.  These 
falls  have  cut  a  narrow  channel  to  a  great  depth,  through  solid  rocks 
of  limestone.  The  banks  here  are  covered  with  hemlock,  cedar,  and 
other  evergreens.  In  some  places,  the  stream  is  so  narrow  that  a 
person  can  leap  from  bank  to  bank.  The  depth  of  the  water  in  some 
places  in  this  channel  has  never  been  sounded.  The  high,  pictur- 
esque and  perpendicular  walls  on  each  side  of  the  foaming  stream, 
the  wild  and  grotesque  appearance  of  the  rocks,  and  the  noise  of  the 
falling  waters,  contrasted  with  the  mild  and  beautiful  aspect  of  the 
surrounding  country,  form  a  landscape  of  exceeding  beauty.  Near 
this  are  the  Yellow  Springs,  a  celebrated  watering  place,  which 
affords  a  cool  and  delightful  retreat  from  the  heat  of  the  summer. 

COLUMBIA,  one  and  a-half  miles  below,  was  originally  designed 
for  the  great  emporium  of  the  west.  It  was  laid  out  by  Maj.  Benja- 
min Stiles,  in  1780,  and  the  plat  extends  for  more  than  a  mile  along 
the  Ohio,  reaching  back  about  three-fourths  of  a  mile.     The  site  not 


32  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

being  found  sufficiently  high  above  the  floods  of  the  river,  the  project 
of  a  city  was  abandoned.  The  whole  bottom  adjoining  is  frequently 
inundated.    The  first  church  in  Ohio  was  built  here. 

JAMESTOWN,  Kentucky,  nearly  opposite,  is  a  small  village 
which  has  only  been  laid  out  a  year  or  two.  The  lots  sold  off 
rapidly,  and  a  number  of  buildings  were  erected  during  the  last  year. 
It  was  completely  inundated  by  the  flood  of  1847.  There  is  a  steam 
ferry  plying  between  this  place  and  Fulton  every  few  minutes  in  the 
day. 

FULTON,  one  mile  below,  in  Hamilton  county,  Ohio,  and  adjoin- 
ing Cincinnati,  is  a  very  flourishing  town,  principally  devoted  to  the 
building  of  steamboats  and  ships.  Within  the  last  few  years,  sev- 
eral ships,  some  of  large  tonnage,  have  been  built  here,  and  found, 
to  be  equally  serviceable,  and  at  a  lower  expense  than  those  built  in 
the  Atlantic  cities.  During  the  year  1S47,  thirty-four  steamboats, 
four  steam-ships,  two  barges,  one  brig,  and  one  ship  were  built  here. 
The  town  extends  along  the  bank  of  the  Ohio  a  distance  of  about 
two  and  a  half  miles,  to  the  corporation  of  Cincinnati.  It  has  a  pop- 
ulation of  about  two  thousand — four  churches,  two  public  school- 
houses,  five  ship-yards,  nine  steam  saw  mills,  one  dry-dock,  one 
foundry,  one  planing  machine,  a  large  number  of  mechanical  shops, 
and  a  number  of  stores  and  groceries.  The  Little  Miami  Railroad 
passes  through  a  great  portion  of  it  by  its  principal  street. 

CINCINNATI,  the  ccunty-seat  of  Hamilton  county,  and  the  larg- 
est city  in  the  west,  stands  on  the  bank  of  the  Ohio,  directly  opposite 
the  mouth  of  Licking  River.  It  is  four  hundred  and  sixty-five  miles, 
by  the  river,  from  Pittsburgh,  one  hundred  and  thiTtyTtwo  above 
Louisville,  six  hundred  and  fifty  from  New  York,  via.  Lake  Erie, 
six  hundred  and  seventeen  from  Philadelphia,  five  hundred  and 
twenty  from  Baltimore,  four  hundred  and  ninety-seven  from  Wash- 
ington City,  four  hundred  and  ninety-four  above  the  mouth  of  the 
Ohio,  and  fourteen  hundred  and  forty-seven  from  New  Orleans.  It 
is  situated  in  a  beautiful  valley  of  about  twelve  miles  in  circumfer- 
ence, surrounded  by  hills.  This  valley  is  divided  nearly  in  the 
center  by  the  Ohio.  The  first  settlement  was  made  here  on  the  24th 
of  December,  1788,  by  a  party  of  men  sent  out  under  Matthias  Den- 
man  and  Robert  Patterson,  to  improve  a  portion  of  the  purchase  mad® 
by  Hon.  John  Cleves  Symmes.  This  purchase  embraced  a  tract  of 
311,682  acres  in  the  southwest  quarter  of  the  state,  lying  between 
the  Great  and  Little  Miami  Rivers.  It  extends  along  the  Ohio  River 
a  distance  of  twenty-seven  miles.  One  square  mile  in  each  township 
was  reserved  for  the  use  of  schools,  and  Section  29  in  each  township 
for  the  support  of  religious  societies. 

The  party  we  before  spoke  of,  landed  opposite  the  mouth  of  the 
Licking,  about  what  is  now  the  junction  of  Front  and  Water  streets, 
and  laid  out  a  town  called  Losantiville.  This  name  was,  however, 
abandoned  in  a  short  time,  and  the  name  of  Cincinnati  given  to  it. 
In  February.  1789,  a  party  under  the  immediate  direction  of  Judge 
Symmes  landed  at  what  is  now  called  North  Bend,  fifteen  miles  below 


Migginsport 


I 


/ =1    "* 


CrawfirtCr. 


34  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

Cincinnati,  and  Ihere  laid  out  what  was  intended  to  be  a  large  city? 
called  Symmes.  In  March,  a  detachment  of  soldiers  arrived  at  the 
Bend,  to  protect  the  settlers.  There  now  existed  considerable  rivalry- 
bet  ween  the  three  places — Columbia,  Cincinnati,  and  North  Bend,  as  to 
which  would  eventually  become  the  chief  seat  of  business.  This 
rivalry  was  terminated  in  favor  of  Cincinnati,  by  the  arrival  of  Major 
Doughty,  from  Fort  Harmar,  who  built  Fort  Washington^  to  which 
the  troops  from  the  Bend  were  subsequently  removed.  The  Fort 
stood  on  what  is  now  Arch-street,  between  Third  and  Fourth,  and 
oast  of  Broadway.  In  January,  1790,  Gen.  Arthur  St.  Clair  organ- 
ized Hamilton  county.  In  the  same  year,  Gen.  Harmar  marched 
from  Fort  Washington  against  the  Indians.  In  the  next  }^ear,  Gen. 
St.  Clair  started  from  the  same  place  on  his  ill-fated  expedition.  On 
his  return,  Major  Ziegler  was  appointed  to  the  command  of  the  Forf. 
and,  in  a  short  time  after,  was  succeeded  by  Col.  Wilkinson,  who  was, 
in  1794,  succeeded  by  Capt.  William  Henry  Harrison  (afterwards 
President,  of  the  United  States),  who  retained  it  until  1798. 

In  1792,  the  first  church  was  erected,  on  Avhat  is  now  the  corner 
of  Main  and  Fourth  streets,  and  occupied  by  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church.  In  the  rear  of  it  are  the  graves  of  many  of  the  pioneers. 
Rev.  James  Kemper  was  the  first  pastor  of  it,  and  Dr.  Joshua  L. 
Wilson  the  second,  who  filled  that  station  upwards  of  forty  years. 
until  his  death,  which  took  place  in  1847.  In  1793,  Wm.  Maxwell 
established  the  first  paper  north  of  the  Ohio  River,  at  Cincinnati, 
called  the  "Sentinel  of  the  Northwestern  Territory."  On  the  11th 
of  January,  1794,  two  keel-boats,  with  bullet-proof  covers  and  port- 
holes, and  provided  with  cannon  and  small  arms,  sailed  from  Cincin- 
nati to  Pittsburgh,  each  making  a  trip  once  in  four  weeks.  During 
this  period  the  town  progressed  but  slowly.  Idleness,  drinking,  and 
gambling  prevailed  to  a  great  extent  in  "the  army,  and  was  partici- 
pated in  by  many  of  the  citizens. 

The  population  in  1795,  was  about  500;  in  1800,  750;  in  1810, 
2,540.  From  1800  to  1812,  it  progressed  pretty  rapidly,  and  consid- 
erable trade  was  carried  on  with  New  Orleans,  in  keel-boats,  which 
returned  laden  with  foreign  goods.  The  passage  to  New  Orleans 
occupied  then  about  twenty-five  days,  and  the  return  sixty-five. 

In  1819,  it  was  incorporated  as  a  city,  and  in  1820.  contained  a 
population  of  10,000;  in  1830,  24,831 ;  in  1840,  46,338;  1847,  90,000; 
and  in  1848,  it  is  estimated  at  100,000. 

The  city  occupies  the  whole  of  the  first  bank  of  the  river,  called 
the  bottom,  and  the  second,  called  the  hill,  which  is  about  one  hun- 
dred and  eight  feet  above  low-water  mark,  and  sixty  feet  above  the 
first  bank.  The  streets  are  so  graded  as  to  render  the  communica- 
tion between  the  two  parts  easy.  The  city  is  laid  out  with  great 
regularity,  and  many  of  the  streets  adorned  with  fine  edifices,  and 
beautiful  shade-trees.  It  extends  back  to  a  third  range  of  hills,  a 
distance,  on  Main-street,  of  nearly  two  miles,  and  in  the  western  part, 
perhaps  more,  and  along  the  Ohio  about  three  miles.  It  contains 
about  fourteen  thousand  houses,  seventy-four  churches,  many  of 
them  very  fine  edifices,  three  literary  colleges,  four  medical  colleges, 
one  law  college,  one  female  college  and  several  female  seminaries. 


Til ::  on  .      ...  v  r:n.  3fi 

four  classical  schools,  twelve  large,  finely-built  public  school-houses, 
with  about  five  thousand  pupils,  six  banks,  with  a  capita!  of  about 
six  millions  of  dollars,  eight  large  public  halls,  a  court-house  and 
jail,  with  three  courts,  sitting  nearly  the  whole  year,  a  mayors-office, 
&c,  a  mercantile  exchange,  a  mercantile  library  and  institute  with 
1,120  members  and  6,100  volumes,  a  mechanic's  institute  and  library 
containing  4,000  volumes,  an  apprentice's  library  containing  2.300 
volumes,  two  Masonic  halls,  six  Odd  Fellows'  halls,  six  Sons  of 
Temperance  halls,  two  Temple  of  Honor  halls,  sixteen  insurance 
offices,  an  observatory,  the  corner-stone  of  which  was  laid  by  John 
Quincy  Adams,  a  post-office,  three  theatres,  water-works,  gas-works, 
one  museum,  one  commercial  hospital  and  lunatic  asylum,  four  or- 
phan's asylums,  <fcc.  There  are,  also,  a  large  number  of  foundries, 
on  an  extensive  scale,  cotton  and  woolen  factories,  mills  of  different 
kinds,  and  manufactories  of  almost  every  description.  Pork-packing 
is  carried  on  more  extensively  here  than  in  any  place  in  the  world,  per- 
haps. The  number  killed  at  the  city  establishments  in  1847  was 
412.161.  Killed  in  the  country  and  brought  to  the  city  to  be  packed, 
74,886.     Total  packed  here,  487,047. 

In  1S47,  there  were  in  operation  in  the  city,  and  within  five  min- 
utes walk  of  its  corporate  limits,  two  hundred  and  two  steam-engines, 
driving  the  machinery  of  foundries,  machine-shops,  planing-mills. 
Hour-mills,  saw-mills,  rolling-mills,  furniture-factories,  &c. 

Merchandizing  is  also  carried  on  to  a  very  great  extent,  and  of 
later  years,  wholesale  houses  have  increased  very  rapidly,  furnishing 
orders  for  a  large  number  of  the  towns  in  the  interior  of  Ohio,  Ken- 
tucky. Indiana  and  Illinois.  The  capital  invested  in  commerce  is 
estimated  at  $20,000,000. 

There  are  thirteen  daily,  and  twenty-five  weekly  newspapers,  and 
four  monthly  periodicals  in  operation  here. 

Seven  turnpikes,  reaching  to  different  parts  of  Ohio,  Indiana,  and 
Kentucky,  center  here.  One  railroad,  reaching  from  the  lakes,  at 
Sandusky,  two  canals,  one  extending  to  the  interior  of  Indiana,  the 
other  to  Toledo,  on  the  lakes,  with  a  branch  to  Lafayette,  Indiana. 
There  is,  also,  a  branch  of  the  Telegraph  here. 

On  the  hills  back  of  the  city  are  two  very  beautiful  villages,  Mt. 
Auburn  and  Walnut  Hills,  mostly  occupied  as  country-seats,  by  per- 
sons doing  business  in  the  city.  Walnut  Hills  is  the  seat  of  "Lane 
Seminary,"  a  theological  institution  under  the  care  of  the  New  School 
Presbyterians.  Rev.  Lyman  Beecher,  D.  D.,  is  the  President.  Four 
miles  northwest  of  the  city  are  two  fine  cemeteries — "Spring  Grove," 
containing  about  one  hundred  acres,  and  the  "Wesley an  Cemetery," 
containing  about  forty  acres.  Both  are  being  rapidly  improved,  with 
great  taste. 

The  lower  part  of  the  city  has  been  overflown  at  two  separate 
periods,  occasioning  great  loss  of  property;  one  in  February,  1832, 
and  the  other  in  December,  1847.  The  water  came  up  to  within  a 
lew  feet  of  Lower  Market-street,  and  was  some  four  feet  deep  on 
Front-street. 

In  the  county,  the  cultivation  of  the  grape  is  carried  on  quite  ex- 
tensively, for  which  the  soil  is  well  suited. 


36  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

To  the  north  of  Cincinnati  are  several  fine  towns,  carrying  on  an 
extensive  business.  Hamilion,  twenty-one  miles,  is  a  place  of  great 
enterprise,  and  having  fine  facilities  of  water  for  manufacturing  pur- 
poses. Dayton,  fifty  miles  north,  is  a  beautiful  city,  with  a  popula- 
tion of  about  eleven  thousand.  It  is  a  place  of  great  wealth  and  re- 
finement. There  are  a  great  many  very  extensive  manufactories  in 
it,  which  are  driven  principally  by  water  from  the  Miami  Canal,  and 
a  Feeder. 

NEWPORT,  opposite  Cincinnati,  on  the  upper  side  of  the  Licking 
River,  in  Campbell  county,  Kentucky,  is  the  principal  town  of  the 
county.  For  many  years  it  has  progressed  but  slowly,  but  within 
the  last  few  years,  a  company  purchased  a  large  tract  of  land  laying- 
just  back  of  the  older  portion  of  the  town,  and  adjoining  the  Lick- 
ing, and  have  laid  it  out  in  town  lots.  These  were  sold  off  rapidly, 
and  many  buildings  commenced  and  erected.  It  now  bids  fair  to 
become  quite  an  extensive  place.  At  present,  it  contains  a  population 
of  about  four  thousand.  A  garrison  of  the  United  States'  Army  has 
been  established  here  for  many  years.  Newport  contains  five  churches, 
one  seminary,  five  private  schools,  twenty-nine  groceries  and  stores, 
one  rolling-mill,  one  cotton  factory,  one  rope  walk,  and  one  silk 
factory. 

The  greater  part  of  the  town  extending  up  the  Licking,  and  along 
the  bank  of  the  Ohio,  was  completely  overflown  by  the  floods  of 
1832  and  1847.  This  will  tend  much  to  decrease  the  value  of  prop- 
erty here. 

A  steam  ferry  plies  from  Cincinnati  every  few  minutes  in  the  day. 
A  Dridge  is  also  about  being  built  across  the  Licking  to  connect  New- 
port with  Covington. 

Alexandria  is  the  county-seat,  thirteen  miles  in  the  interior. 

COVINGTON,  on  the  lower  side  of  the  mouth  of  the  Licking,  in 
Kenton  county,  Kentucky,  is  built  on  a  beautiful  plain,  most  of  which 
is  above  high  water  mark.  The  streets  are  laid  out  so  as  to  appear 
from  the  hills  back  of  Cincinnati  as  a  continuation  of  that  city. 
Covington  is  in  a  highly  flourishing  condition,  and  bids  fair  to  be- 
come a  very  large  city.  A  steam  ferry  makes  intercourse  between 
it  and  Cincinnati  easy.  The  population  is  now  abouteleventhousand, 
and  rapidly  increasing.  It  contains  a  fine  city  hall,  eight  churches, 
two  printing-offices,  a  very  richly-endowed  theological  college  be- 
longing to  the  Baptists,  seventy  dry-goods  and  grocery  stores,  thirty- 
five  tobacco  factories,  one  rolling-mill,  one  steam  grist-mill,  three  rope 
walks,  one  cotton  factory,  one  silk  factory,  and  many  other  manu- 
factories of  different  kinds.  About  a  mile  back  of  the  city  is  a  beau- 
tiful cemetery  called  Linden  Grove.  Four  miles  in  the  interior  are 
the  Latonian  Springs,  a  very  fashionable  and  pleasant  resort  in  the 
summer  season. 

The  county-seat  is  Independence,  ten  miles  in  the  interior. 

This  county,  as  well  as  Campbell,  is  principally  hilly,  but  very 
productive. 

NORTH  BEND,  sixteen  miles  below  Cincinnati,  in  Hamilton 


THE    OHIO    RIVER.  37 

county,  Ohfo,  near  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Miami,  was  the  place 
originally  laid  out  by  Judge  Symmes  for  the  great  city  of  the  west. 
All  traces  of  a  town  have  disappeared,  and  it  is  now  noted  as  the 
former  residence  and  grave  of  the  lamented  President  Harrison. 
The  house  which  he  formerly  occupied  is  a  plain  country  farm-house, 
in  full  view  of  the  river.  His  widow,  and  several  members  of  his 
family  now  reside  here.  On  a  beautiful  knoll,  just  below,  his  remains 
are  interred.  A  plain  brick  vault  is  erected  over  them,  and  is  visible 
for  several  miles  up  and  down  the  river.  Standing  by  its  side,  the 
eye  of  the  observer  takes  in  a  beautiful  view  of  parts  of  Ohio,  Indiana, 
and  Kentucky.  About  thirty  rods  west  of  it,  is  the  grave  of  the 
Hon.  John  Cleves  Symmes. 

The  Whitewater  Canal  here  passes  through  the  hill  by  a  tunnel 
of  about  one-third  of  a  mile  in  length. 

THE  GREAT  MIAMI  RIVER,  four  miles  below,  rises  in  the 
northwestern  part  of  this  state,  and,  flowing  in  a  southwesterly  direc- 
tion, enters  the  Ohio,  forming,  for  a  short  distance  above  and  at  its 
mouth,  the  boundary  line  between  Ohio  and  Indiana.  Its  principal 
tributary  is  Mad  River,  which  rises  in  Logan  county,  and,  after  trav- 
ersing a  fine,  populous  country,  enters  the  Miami  at  Dayton,  seventy 
miles  above  its  mouth.  It  flows  through  an  extremely  fertile  and 
beautiful  country.  On  its  banks  are  numerous  fine  mill-seats. 
There  is  no  land  in  the  world,  perhaps,  richer  than  the  Miami 
bottoms. 

There  are  several  towns,  of  considerable  importance  in  the  state, 
situated  on  its  banks ;  among  which  are  Hamilton,  Dayton,  Troy, 
and  Piqua. 

LAWRENCEBURGH,  two  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of 
Dearborn  county,  la.  It  is  situated  in  a  very  rich  bottom,  and  is  the 
depot  for  the  immense  productions  of  the  fertile  valleys  of  the  Miami 
and  Whitewater  rivers.  The  older  part  of  the  town  is  built  on  the 
first  bottom  which  is  frequently  liable  to  inundation.  Several  years 
ago,  buildings  were  commenced  on  the  second  bottom,  and  that  por- 
tion is  now  rapidly  improving.     It  is  called  New  Lawrenceburg. 

The  Whitewater  Valley  Canal  terminates  here,  and  affords  fine 
water  power.  This  canal  extends  to  Cambridge,  on  the  National 
Road,  a  distance  of  seventy-six  miles,  through  some  of  the  richest 
lands  of  Indiana.  Several  towns  of  considerable  importance  are 
situated  on  it ;  among  them,  Harrison,  Brookville,  Connersville,  and 
Cambridge. 

Lawrenceburgh  contains  five  churches,  a  large  number  of  dry 
goods'  and  grocery  stores,  &c,  a  court-house,  three  large  flouring 
mills,  two  saw  mills,  one  corn  mill,  one  oil  mill,  one  carding  machine, 
and  one  of  the  largest  distilleries  in  the  west,  turning  out  one  hun- 
dred barrels  of  whisky  per  day.  Population,  three  thousand  five 
hundred.  It  was  incorporated  a  city  in  1846.  The  county-seat  was, 
some  years  ago,  removed  from  Lawrenceburgh  to  Wilmington,  sev- 
eral miles  in  the  interior.  About  three  years  ago,  however,  it  was 
brought  back  to  Lawrenceburgh.  At  Wilmington,  there  is  a  very 
flourishing  county  academy. 


38  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

PETERSBURG!!,  two  miles  below,  in  Boone  counfy,  Ky.,  is  a 
small  village  containing  two  churches,  two  stores,  two  schools,  and 
a  population  of  two  hundred  and  fifty.  This  place  occupies  the  site 
of  an  aboriginal  burying-ground,  and  many  remains  of  it  have  been 
found,  such  as  bones,  earthenware  vessels,  and  utensils  of  stone,  cu- 
riously carved.  A  short  distance  above  the  town  are  the  remains  of 
an  ancient  fortification.  A  portion  of  the  walls,  about  four  feet  high 
and  extending  from  the  bank  of  the  Ohio  to  Taylor's  creek,  forming 
an  area  of  about  twenty  acres  of  ground,  may  yet  be  seen. 

Burlington,  the  county-seat,  is  eight  miles  in  the  interior. 

AURORA,  two  miles  below,  at  the  mouth  of  Hogan  creek,  is  a  very 
thriving  and  business  town  in  Dearborn  county,  la.,  containing  a 
population  of  two  thousand  three  hundred.  It  was  first  laid  off  in 
1819.  In  January,  1848,  it  was  incorporated  as  a  city.  It  contains 
two  churches,  twelve  stores,  one  saw-mill,  one  large  distillery,  and  a 
number  of  coopering  establishments,  in  which  a  large  business  is 
done.  Ten  thousand  hogs  were  packed  here  in  1847.  A  steamboat 
plies  between  this  place  and  Cincinnati  regularly  every  day. 

BELLEV1EW,  six  miles  below,  in  Kentucky,  is  a  small  village 
containing  two  stores,  and  six  or  eight  houses. 

RISING  SUN,  three  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Ohio  county, 
Indiana.  It  is  beautifully  situated  on  an  elevated  bank  of  the  river, 
and  is  a  very  flourishing  and  business  place.  There  is  a  large  cotton 
and  woolen  factory  here,  doing  an  extensive  business.  Since  the 
establishment  of  this  as  the  county-seat  (some  four  years  ago),  it  has 
been  improving  rapidly.  It  now  contains  three  churches,  an  academy, 
a  beautiful  court-house,  a  printing-office,  a  large  number  of  stores, 
two  mills  and  a  distillery,  an  extensive  tannery,  and  a  population  of 
about  two  thousand.  The  country  back  of  it  is  very  beautiful  and 
fertile. 

BIG  BONE  LICK  CREEK,  twelve  miles  below,  in  Kentucky. 
About  two  miles  from  the  mouth  of  this  creek  is  the  place  celebrated 
as  the  Big  Bone  Lick  Springs.  The  water  is  impregnated  with  salt, 
and  the  place  derives  its  name  from  the  immense  number  of  bones 
of  the  Mastodon  or  Mammoth,  and  the  Arctic  Elephant,  found  scat- 
tered all  over  the  surface  of  the  earth.  The  first  account  of  the  visit 
of  any  white  man  to  this  place  was  by  James  Douglas,  of  Virginia, 
in  1773,  who  made  use  of  the  rib-bones  of  the  animals  for  tent-poles. 
The  dimension  of  the  bones,  as  described  by  those  who  have  found 
them,  indicate  the  former  existence  of  animals  much  larger  than  any 
now  found  on  the  globe.  Two  of  the  tusks  found  here  were  eleven 
feet  in  length  and  at  the  large  end  six  or  seven  inches  in  diameter. 
The  thigh-bones  were  about  five  feet  in  length,  and  a  straight  line 
drawn  from  one  end  of  the  ribs  to  the  other  would  be  five  feet.  A 
collection  of  these  bones  was  made  in  1803,  by  Dr.  Goforth ;  another 
in  1S05,  by  order  of  President  Jefferson  ;  a  third  in  1819,  by  the 
Western  Museum  Society;  and  a  fourth  in  1831,  by  Mr.  Finnell,  of 
Kentucky. 


x> 


%. 


Arnolds0 


40  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

This  is  the  place  where,  according  to  the  tradition  of  the  Delaware 
Indians,  as  related  by  Mr.  Jefferson,  such  herds  of  the  Mammoth 
came  to  destroy  the  game  of  the  Red  Man,  that  the  Great  Spirit  took 
pity  on  him,  and,  seizing  his  lightning,  descended  to  a  rock  on  a 
neighboring  hill  (where  his  seat  and  the"  print  of  his  feet  are  still  to 
be  seen),  and  hurled  his  bolts  among  them  until  all  were  slain  except 
the  Big  Bull,  who  presented  his  forehead  to  the  shafts  and  shook 
them  off  as  they  fell;  missing  one,  at  last,  it  wounded  him  in  his 
side,  whereupon,  springing  round,  he  bounded  over  the  Ohio,  the 
Wabash,  the  Illinois,  and  finally  over  the  great  lakes,  where  he  is 
still  living.     Just  below  the  mouth  of  Big  Bone  Lick  creek  is 

HAMILTON,  a  small  village  in  Boone  county,  Ky.,  containing 
three  or  four  stores,  and  a  population  of  two  hundred. 

PATRIOT,  two  miles  below,  in  Switzerland  county,  la.,  contains 
five  stores,  three  churches,  and  a  population  of  about  five  hundred. 

WARSAW,  eleven  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Gallatin 
county,  Ky.,  and  was  formerly  known  as  Fredericksburg.  It  con- 
tains a  court-house  and  county  buildings,  two  churches,  three  schools, 
one  newspaper,  twelve  stores  and  groceries,  two  pork-houses,  one 
tobacco  factory,  one  flouring  mill,  and  a  distillery.  Population  eight 
hundred.  This  is  a  place  of  considerable  trade,  and  exports  a  large 
quantity  of  produce  and  tobacco.  The  country  is  hilly  but  very  pro- 
ductive— raising  fine  crops  of  corn,  wheat,  and  tobacco.  It  also 
abounds  in  fine  timber. 

NEW  YORK,  sometimes  called  Little  York,  one  mile  below,  in 
Switzerland  county,  la.,  is  a  small  village,  containing  three  or  four 
stores,  and  about  one  hundred  inhabitants. 

VEVAY,  ten  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Switzerland  county, 
la.  It  was  settled  in  1S04,  by  a  number  of  Swiss  families,  to  whom 
Congress  made  a  favorable  grant  of  land  for  the  purpose  of  com- 
mencing the  cultivation  of  the  grape.  The  colony  soon  received  a 
considerable  addition  of  numbers,  from  the  mountains  of  Switzerland, 
and,  in  remembrance  of  their  native  country,  they  called  it  Vevay. 
They  immediately  commenced  the  cultivation  of  the  grape,  and  have 
carried  it  on  ever  since.  The  grape  found  to  succeed  best  is  the 
Cape  grape,  from  which  a  considerable  quantity  of  wine,  resembling 
claret,  is  made.  Vevay  contains  a  court-house,  an  academy,  a  print- 
ing-office, and  a  number  of  stores.  Population  about  one  thousand 
five  hundred. 

GHENT,  opposite  Vevay,  in  Carroll  county,  Ky.,  is  a  handsome 
village,  containing  three  churches,  five  stores,  one  tobacco  manufac- 
tory, and  a  population  of  three  hundred. 

CARROLLTON,  formerly  called  Port  William,  ten  miles  below, 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Kentucky  River,  is  the  county-seat  of  Carroll 
county,  Ky.  This  point  was  first  settled  by  a  Mr.  Elliott,  in  1784. 
In  March,  17S5,  his  house  was  attacked  by  a  body  of  Indians  and 


42  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

burned,  and  himself  killed.  In  1786,  Capt.  Ellison  erected  a  block- 
house, but  was  driven  from  it  by  the  Indians.  In  1789,  Gen.  Charles 
Scott  erected  a  block-house,  and  fortified  it  by  pickets.  It  was  occu- 
pied until  1792,  when  the  present  town  was  laid  out. 

"About  four  miles  from  Carrollton,  on  the  Muddy  Fork  of  White 
Run,  in  the  bed  of  the  creek,  on  a  lime-stone  rock,  is  the  form  of  a 
human  being,  in  a  sitting  posture;  and  near  by,  is  the  form  of  one 
lying  on  his  back,  about  six  feet  long,  and  distinctly  marked." 

Carrollton  contains  a  court-house  and  public  buildings,  one  acade- 
my, three  churches,  seven  stores,  two  piano-forte  manufactories,  two 
corn-mills,  one  steam  saw  mill,  one  carding  factory,  one  rope-walk, 
and  a  population  of  eight  hundred. 

THE  KENTUCKY  RIVER  rises  in  the  Cumberland  Mountains, 
and  interlocks  with  the  head-waters  of  the  Licking  and  Cumberland 
rivers — length  about  two  hundred  miles.  It  is  navigable  for  flatboats 
one  hundred  and  fifty  miles.  To  Frankfort,  sixty  miles  from  its 
mouth,  it  has  been  made  navigable  by  means  of  locks  and  dams  for 
steamboats  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  tons  burden,  and  regular  steam- 
boats ply  daily  between  Cincinnati  and  Frankfort.  For  a  great  part 
of  its  course  it  flows  in  a  channel  cut  out  of  perpendicular  banks  of 
limestone.  Stone-coal  is  found  in  its  banks  in  several  places,  and  a 
species  of  marble  which  receives  a  fine  polish. 

Near  its  mouth,  there  are  many  remains  of  ancient  fortifications  of 
immense  size,  numerous  mounds,  and  ancient  curiosities  are  found 
on  its  banks. 

On  the  banks  of  this  river  above  Frankfort  is  situated  Boones- 
borough,  celebrated  in  the  history  of  the  west  for  its  memorable  sieges 
by  the  Indians.     The  fort  was  built  by  Daniel  Boone,  in  1775. 

The  scenery  along  the  river  in  grandeur  and  beauty  is  second  only 
in  America  to  that  on  the  Hudson. 

FRANKFORT,  the  seat  of  government  of  the  state,  is  situated 
on  the  east  bank,  sixty  miles  from  the  mouth.  It  stands  in  a  deep 
valley,  surrounded  by  precipitous  hills.  It  is  compactly  built,  and 
most  of  the  buildings  display  great  taste  in  their  erection.  It  contains 
a  fine  state-house,  a  court-house,  penitentiary,  state  bank,  two  news- 
papers, thirty  stores  of  different  kinds,  four  churches,  three  bagging 
factories.  Population  two  thousand  six  hundred.  The  city  wTas  first 
established  in  L786,  and  the  seat  of  government  located  here  in  1792. 

The  celebrated  Harrodsburgh  Springs  are  about  thirty  miles  from 
Frankfort,  and  eight  miles  from  the  Kentucky  River. 

PRESTON,  a  small  village  just  below  the  mouth  of  the  Kentucky 
River,  contains  one  store,  and  about  one  hundred  inhabitants. 

MADISON,  ten  miles  below,  the  county-seat  of  Jefferson  county, 
la.,  is  one  of  the  most  flourishing  places  on  the  river.  "Within  the 
past  few  years,  it  has  increased  very  rapidly.  It  is  beautifully  situ- 
ated, and,  although  so  near  the  two  cities  of  Cincinnati  and  Louis- 
ville, promises  to  be  quite  a  large  city.  It  is  the  depot  and  shipping- 
point  for  goods  for  the  interior  of  the  state,  and  also  for  shipping 


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44  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

produce  up  and  down  the  river.  A  railroad  runs  from  it  to  Indian- 
apolis, the  capital  of  the  state— a  distance  of  ninety-five  miles. 
There  is,  also,  an  office  of  the  Telegraph  established  here. 

Madison  is  well  and  compactly  built,  and  contains  seven  churches, 
a  large  number  of  dry-goods,  grocery,  forwarding,  commission,  and 
other  stores,  one  mill,  several  factories  of  different  kinds,  and  a  pop- 
ulation of  eight  thousand.  Three  steamboats  are  owned  here.  There 
are,  also,  several  large  pork-packing  establishments,  at  which  seventy- 
five  thousand  hogs  were  packed  in  1847. 

INDIANAPOLIS,  the  capital  of  Indiana,  is  situated  on  White 
River,  in  the  midst  of  a  very  fertile  country.  It  is  one  hundred  and 
eight  miles  northwest  of  Cincinnati,  and  five  hundred  and  seventy- 
three  miles  from  Washington  City.  It  has  a  fine  state-house  and 
public  buildings,  a  large  number  of  churches,  schools,  stores,  and 
business  places,  and  ranks  high  for  morality  and  intelligence. 
It  is  rapidly  growing  into  importance.  The  population  is  now  about 
six  thousand. 

MILTON,  in  Trimball  county,  Ky.,  a  little  above  Madison,  is  a 
small  village  containing  two  stores  and  a  few  houses,  and  about  one 
hundred  and  fifty  inhabitants.     Bedford  is  the  county-seat. 

HANOVER  LANDING,  six  miles  below,  in  Jefferson  county,  la. 
A  few  miles  in  the  interior  is  South  Hanover,  at  which  place  is  South 
Hanover  College,  a  literary  institution  of  considerable  celebrity. 

NEW  LONDON,  four  miles  below,  is  a  small  place,  in  Indiana, 
containing  a  few  houses. 

BETHLEHEM,  eight  miles  below,  in  Indiana,  is  a  small  village, 
containing  three  stores,  one  church,  and  about  four  hundred  inhab- 
itants. 

WESTPORT,  six  miles  below,  in  Oldham  county,  Ky.,  formerly 
the  county-seat.  It  contains  two  churches,  three  stores,  one  large 
flouring-mill,  and  about  three  hundred  inhabitants.  At  La  Grange,  the 
present  county-seat,  is  located  a  flourishing  Masonic  college,  under, 
the  supervision  of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Kentucky. 

CHARLESTON  LANDING,  twelve  miles  below,  is  the  landing- 
point  for  Charleston,  in  the  interior,  and  county-seat  of  Clark  county, 
Indiana. 

UTICA,  five  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is  a  very  thriving 
village,  of  about  three  hundred  inhabitants. 

JEFFER.SONVILLE,  nine  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is 
situated  just  above  the  Falls  of  the  Ohio.  It  commands  a  fine  pros- 
pect of  the  surrounding  country,  including  a  view  of  the  Falls.  It 
contains  several  churches,  a  land-office,  printing-office,  a  number  of 
stores,  and  a  population  of  two  thousand  four  hundred.  The  peni- 
tentiary of  the  slate  is  located  here.  It  is  a  large  building,  and  well- 
arranged  for  the  confinement  of  the  convicts.     About  a  mile  back  of 


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46  THE    OHIO    RIVER 

the  town  is  a  fine  spring  and  watering-place,  with  accommodations 
for  visiters. 

LOUISVILLE,  one   mile  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Jefferson 
county,  Kentucky.     It  is  situated  at  the  Falls  of  the  Ohio,  six  hun- 
dred  and   seven  miles  from  Pittsburgh,  and  fourteen  hundred  and 
eighty  from  New  Orleans.     It  was  laid  off  by  Capt.  Thomas  Bullitt, 
of  Va.,  in  August,  1773,  but  no  settlement  was  made  until  1778,  when 
a  small  party  arrived  here,  with  George  Rogers  Clark. and  settled  on 
what  is  now  called  Corn  Island,  close  to  the  Kentucky  shore.     After 
she  posts  occupied  by  the  British  on  the  Wabash  had  been  taken  by 
General  Clark,  they  removed  to  the  spot  on  which  Louisville  now 
stands,  in  the  fall  of  the  same  year.     They  built  a  block-house  here, 
which  was  subsequently  removed  and  a  large  fort  erected  in  1782. 
called  Fort  Nelson.     In  1780,  the  town  was  established  by  an  act  of 
the  legislature  of  Virginia,  under  whose  jurisdiction  Kentucky  then 
was.     At  this  time,  the  population  was  only  thirty.     In  1800,  it  was 
600;  in  1810,  1,300;  in  1820,  4,000;  in  1830,  10,090;  in  1840,  21.000; 
in  1843,  28,000;  1845,  32,000;  and  at  present  it  is  supposed  to  be 
40,000.     It  is  now  the  most  important  commercial  city  in  Kentucky, 
and  one  of  the  most  important  in  the  west.     It  was  formerly  deemed 
very  unhealthy,  but  is  now  one  of  the  healthiest  cities  on  the  river. 
It  is  built  on  a  spacious  sloping  plane,  seventy  feet  above  low-water 
mark.     The   streets  are  broad  and  beautiful,  and  laid  out  at  right 
angles  with   each  other.     It  contains  a   city  hall   and  court-house 
(which  are  not  yet  finished,  but  modeled  in  an  immense  and  beauti- 
ful style),  a  medical  institute  and  university,  two  hospitals,  an  asylum 
for  the  blind,  thirty  churches,  twenty-eight  schools,  a  magnetic  tele- 
graph office,  two  orphan  asylums,  a  work-house,  and  a  large  number 
of  religious,   literary,   and   benevolent  institutions.     There  are  four 
daily,  four  Iri-weekly,  and  ten  weekly  newspapers,  one  monthly  and 
one  quarterly  periodical  published  here.     There  are,  also,  a  large 
number  of  foundries,  rolling-mills,   flouring-mills,   and  factories  of 
different  kinds,  all  in  successful  operation.     The  packing  of  pork 
forms  a  great  item  of  the  business  of  the  city:  97,200  hogs  were 
packed  here  in  1847. 

The  falls  of  the  river  at  this  place,  obstruct  navigation  entirely  at 
low  stages  of  water.  To  obviate  this,  a  canal  has  been  cut  round 
them,  to  Shippingsport,  a  distance  of  two  miles.  It  is  a  work  of 
stupendous  labor,  being  cut  a  greater  part  of  its  length  through  solid 
rock.  It  is,  in  some  places,  forty  feet  deep,  and  of  sufficient  width 
to  pass  steamboats  through,  and  affords  fine  water-power  for  the  mill- 
seats  below  the  locks.  The  canal  is  owned  by  an  incorporated  com- 
pany— the  General  Government  holding  nearly  one-half  the  stock. 

On  the24lh  of  September,  1816,  the  steamboat  Washington,  under 
the  command  of  Capt.  Shreve,  made  the  first  voyage  ever  made  by 
a  steam  vessel  from  Louisville  to  New  Orleans.  On  the  3d  of  March, 
1817,  she  started  on  another  trip,  and  made  the  time  to  New  Orleans  and 
back  in  forty-one  days;  the  ascending  voyage  being  made  in  twenty- 
five  days.  A  public  dinner  was  given  to  the  Captain  by  the  citizens 
af  Louisville,  at  which  he  predicted,  that  the  day  was  not  far  distant 


■<    £         Bf—H**T1  frsr-'/tw*  t*wil 


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48  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

when  the  trip  would  be  made  in  ten  days.     It  has  since  been  made 
in  less  than  Jive  days. 

In  a  report  submitted  to  the  convention  held  at  Chicago  in  1847, 
by  Thomas  Allen,  Esq.,  of  St.  Louis,  it  is  stated  that  the  number  of 
steamboats  engaged  in  the  trade  of  the  western  waters  in  1846  was 
twelve  hundred,  valued  at  sixteen  millions  of  dollars,  and  also  four 
thousand  keel  and  flat  boats.  The  total  value  of  the  domestic  pro- 
ducts put  afloat  on  the  waters  of  the  valley  is  two  hundred  and  sixty 
millions;  and  the  value  of  the  whole  commerce  four  hundred  and 
thirty  millions,  being  double  the  amount  of  the  total  foreign  com- 
merce of  the  United  States.  The  number  of  steamboats  lost  in  1842 
was  sixty-eight;  in  1846,  thirty-six. 

SHIPPINGSPORT,  two  miles  below  Louisville,  at  the  foot  of  the 
canal,  is  a  small  and  rather  dilapidated  village  containing  one  fine 
mill,  four  small  stores  and  groceries,  and  a  population  of  about  one 
hundred  and  fifty. 

PORTLAND,  one  mile  below,  in  Kentucky,  is  a  place  of  some 
importance,  presenting  a  business-looking  appearance.  A  line  of 
omnibusses  run  from  it  to  Louisville  every  few  moments  in  the  day, 
and  it  is  connected  with  New  Albany,  on  the  opposite  side,  by  a  ferry- 
boat, which  plies  almost  constantly.  Portland  contains  a  number  of 
very  good  buildings,  six  or  eight  stores,  and  a  population  of  about 
six  hundred. 

NEW  ALBANY,  opposite  Portland,  the  county-seat  of  Floyd 
county,  la.,  is  one  of  the  largest  and  most  commercial  places  in  the 
state.  It  is  well-built,  and,  with  its  wide  and  beautiful  streets,  pre- 
sents a  fine  appearance.  It  contains  nine  churches,  a  male  and  fe- 
male seminary,  a  tyceum,  a  theological  college,  a  branch  of  the  State 
Bank  of  Indiana,  four  schools,  several  extensive  ship-yards,  at  which 
from  ten  to  fifteen  steamboats,  sloops,  and  schooners  are  annually 
built.  There  are  also  several  foundries  and  machine-shops,  doing  a 
large  business.  Considerable  attention  is  being  paid  to  boat-building 
and  repairing,  and  a  fine  dock,  worked  by  two  steam-engines,  is  in 
course  of  erection.  Large  subscriptions  have  recently  been  made  for 
the  purpose  of  constructing  a  railroad  from  this  place  to  Salem — a 
distance  of  about  thirty  miles — to  connect  with  one  contemplated 
from  Cincinnati  to  St.  Louis.  The  work  is  in  course  of  progression, 
and  when  completed  will  add  very  much  to  the  commercial  facilities 
of  the  place.     The  population  is  now  about  six  thousand. 

SALT  RIVER,  nineteen  miles  below,  in  Kentucky,  so-called  from 
the  numerous  salt-licks  on  its  banks.  The  first  salt-works  in  the 
state  were  erected  on  this  river,  about  three  miles  from  Shepherds- 
ville,  the  county-seat.  A  garrison  was  also  established  here,  called 
Mud  garrison,  to  protect  the  salt-workers  and  their  families.  The 
river  was  much  frequented  by  the  Indians,  for  the  purpose  of  hunt- 
ing the  game  that  resorted  there  for  salt,  and  many  severe  conflicts 
took  place  between  them  and  the  whites,  which  form  interesting  pas- 
sages in  the  history  of  the  state.     In  May,  1778,  a  boat  owned  by 


T  H  fc    0  H  I  O    R  I  V  E  R.  49 

Henry  Crist  left  Louisville,  \vi:h  twelve  armed  men  and  a  woman, 
with  the  necessary  utensils  for  salt-making',  and  startled  up  Salt  Riven 
They  were  decoyed  to  the  bank  by  sounds  resembling  a  turkey's 
call,  and  as  two  of  the  men  sprang  upon  shore,  they  were  fired  upon  by 
a  large  body  of  Indians.  They  ran  back  toward  the  boat.'  when  a 
most  bloody  and  desperate  encounter  took  place,  in  which  eleven  of 
the  boat's  crew  were  killed,  the  twelfth,  Mr.  Crist,  horribly  mangled, 
and  the  woman  taken  prisoner  and  carried  to  Canada.  Mr.  Crist 
made  his  escape  by  crawling  through  the  woods  for  three  days  and 
nights,  on  his  hands  and  knees,  amid  the  most  horrible  tortures.  He 
lingered  for  a  year  with  his  wounds,  but  finally  recovered,  and  after- 
ward served  in  the  legislature  of  Kentucky,  and  also  in  Congress  in 
1808.  It  was  subsequently  ascertained  by  the  woman  who  had  been 
taken  prisoner  and  redeemed,  that  the  number  of  the  Indians  was  one 
hundred  and  twenty,  of  which  about  thirty  were  killed  in  the  en- 
gagement. 

WEST  POINT,  just  below  the  mourn  of  Salt  River,  in  Hardin 
county,  is  a  small  thriving  village,  containing  four  stores.  A  boat- 
yard has  been  established  here  recently,  which  is  commencing  an 
extensive  business. 

BRANDENBURG,  eighteen  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of 
Mead  county,  Ky.  It  is  built  on  a  high  bluff  of  the  river,  and  con- 
tains a  court-house,  two  churches,  fourteen  stores  and  groceries,  and 
two  flouring  mills.  Considerable  quantities  of  corn  and  tobacco  are 
shipped  from  this  place.     Population  six  hundred. 

At  the  southern  border  of  the  count}'',  and  just  at  the  junction  of 
the  counties  of  Hardin,  Breckenridge,  and  Mead,  is  a  place  called 
Big  Spring,  deriving  its  name  from  a  large  spring  which  bursts  up 
from  the  earth,  and,  flowing  off  two  or  three  hundred  yards,  in  a 
stream  large  enough  to  supply  a  mill,  sinks  again  and  disappears. 

MAUCKPORT,  three  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  Harrison 
county,  la. 

NORTHAMPTON,  seven  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  the 
same  county. 

AMSTERDAM,  two  and  a-half  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in 
the  same  counter. 

LEAVENWORTH,  eight  miles  below,  in  Crawford  county,  la.,  is 
.situated  on  a  high  bank,  and  is  a  place  of  considerable  husiness.  It 
contains  nine  stores,  a  church,  a  newspaper  printing-office,  and  a  pop- 
ulation of  about  four  hundred. 

FREDONIA,  four  and  a-half  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of 
Crawford  county,  la.,  and  is  situated  on  a  very  high  hill,  a  short  dis- 
tance from  the  river.  It  contains  three  or  four  stores,  and  a  popula- 
tion of  about  two  hundred  and  fifty. 

ALTON,  fourteen  miles  below,  at  the  lower  side  of  the  mouth  of 
battle  Blue  River,  is  a  small  village  in  Perry  county,  la. 
4 


50  THE    OHIO    RIVER 

CONCORDIA,  ten  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  Mead  county, 
Ky.,  containing  forty  or  fifty  inhabitants.  It  is  two  miles  above  Flint 
Island.   . 

ROME,  twelve  miles  below,  opposite  the  mouth  of  Sinking  Creek; 
is  the  county-seat  of  Perry  county,  Indiana.  It  is  a  small  and  very 
dilapidated  looking  place,  containing  a  court-house,  three  stores, 
and  a  population  of  three  hundred. 

STEPHENSPORT,  opposite,  at  the  mouth  of  Sinking  Creek,  is  a 
handsome  little  village  in  Breckenridge  county,  Kentucky.  A  con- 
siderable business  is  done  here,  in  shipping  the  productions  of  the 
interior  country.     Population  two  hundred. 

SINKING  CREEK,  is  a  considerable  stream  supplying  abundance 
of  water  for  mills  during  the  whole  year.  Mr.  Collins,  in  his  ad- 
mirable history  of  Kentucky,  says:  "Six  or  seven  miles  from  its 
source,  the  creek  suddenly. sinks  beneath  the  earth,  showing  no  trace 
of  its  existence,  for  five  or  six  miles,  when  it  re-appears  above  ground 
and  flows  into  the  Ohio.  On  this  creek  is  to  be  seen  a  natural  rock 
mill-dam,  eight  feet  high  and  forty  feet  wide,  which  answers  all  the 
purposes  of  a  dam,  to  a  mill  which  has  been  erected  at  the  place  by 
a  Mr.  Hueston.  Near  the  creek  is  a  large  cave,  called  Penitentiary 
cave,  which  has  never  been  fully  explored.  Some  of  the  apartments 
are  said  to  rival,  in  the  splendor  and  magnificence  of  their  scenery, 
the  celebrated  Mammoth  Cave,  in  Edmonson  county,  Ky.  In  one 
of  the  rooms,  about  one  hundred  yards  from  the  mouth  of  the  cave, 
the  roof  is  from  sixty  to  seventy  feet  high,  and  on  the  floor  there  are 
three  natural  basins  or  troughs  of  cool,  clear  water,  of  very  remark- 
able construction  and  appearance,  fifteen  feet  in  length,  four  fleet  wide, 
and  twelve  inches  deep.  These  basins  are  elevated  above  the  level 
of  the  floor,  in  the  form  of  troughs,  and  it  is  remarkable  that  the 
stone  which  forms  the  sides  and  ends  of  the  basins,  do  not  exceed  in 
thickness  the  blade  of  a  table-knife." 

CLOVERPORT,  ten  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is  an  im- 
portant point  for  shipping  of  tobacco,  of  which  fine  crops  are  grown 
in  the  county.  Other  produce  is  also  forwarded  from  this  point.  It 
contains  a  population  of  seven  hundred.  There  are  extensive  beds 
of  fine  coal  in  its  vicinity.  Four  miles  in  the  interior  are  the  White 
Sulphur,  Breckenridge,  and  Tar  Springs. 

HAWSVILLE,  fourteen  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Han- 
cock county,  Ky.  It  contains  a  court-house  and  two  churches,  two 
schools,  ten  stores,  and  a  population  of  five  hundred.  It  derives 
considerable  trade  from  its  extensive  mines  of  coal,  which  furnishes 
the  steamboats  with  an  abundant  supply  at  cheap  rates ;  besides  ship- 
ping large  quantities  to  New  Orleans.  There  is  a  natural  fortification 
about  four  miles  above  this  place  and  a  short  distance  from  the  river. 
It  consists  of  a  circular  cliff  of  from  fifty  to  one  hundred  feet  ir 
height,  so  projecting  at  the  top  as  to  be  impossible  for  access  except 
at  one  place. 


k.  IwltanCr. 


Harmon  Cy. 

I  Indian  Cr. 


Hancock  Cy 


Havtnitlt 


52  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

CANNELTON,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  in  Indiana,  is  & 
handsome  little  village,  with  one  church,  several  stores,  and  a  popu- 
lation of  three  hundred.     It  is  also  engaged  largely  in  the  coal  trade. 

TROY,  six  miles  below,  in  Perry  county,  la.,  is  a  small  village, 
with  one  church,  three  small  stores  and  groceries,  and  a  population 
of  about  two  hundred. 

MAXVILLE,  one  mile  below,  in  Indiana,  at  the  lower  side  of  the 
mouth  of  Anderson's  river,  is  a  small  place  with  six  or  seven  houses. 

BATESVILLE,  two  miles  below,  at  the  mouth  of  Crooked  Creek, 
la.,  is  about  the  same  size  of  Maxville. 

LEWISPORT,  three  miles  below,  in  Hancock  county,  Ky.,  is  a 
small  village  extending  for  some  distance  along  the  river.  It  contains 
about  thirty  houses,  three  stores  and  groceries,  and  a  population  of 
two  hundred  and  twenty-five. 

ROCKPORT,  thirteen  miles  below,  in  Spencer  county,  la.,  is  a 
small  village,  situated  on  Rock  Lady  Washington.  This  rock  is  a 
formation  of  sand-stone,  which  rises  in  a  circular  form  to  the  height 
of  thirty  feet  above  the  first  bank  of  the  river.  It  presents  a  bold 
front  to  the  river,  and  affords  quite  a  relief  to  the  eye  after  looking 
over  the  continuous  succession  of  low  bottom-land,  which  presents 
itself  for  miles.  The  position  is  a  very  commanding  and  beautiful 
one  for  a  town,  and  the  surrounding  country  exceedingly  rich  and 
fertile,  producing  large  crops  of  corn,  &c. 

OWENSBURGH,  nine  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Daviess 
county,  Ky.  It  is  a  very  handsome  place,  situated  in  a  fertile  region, 
abounding  in  mineral  resources.  It  contains  a  court-house,  four 
churches,  an  academy,  thirteen  stores  and  groceries,  and  a  population 
of  one  thousand. 

This  county  was  named  after  Col.  Joseph  Hamilton  Daviess,  who 
was  one  of  the  ablest  lawyers  and  most  eloquent  orators  of  Kentucky. 
He  was  a  brother-in-law  of  Chief  Justice  Marshall.  In  1811,  he 
joined  the  army  under  Gen.  Harrison,  which  marched  against  the 
Indians  on  the  Wabash,  and  received  the  appointment  of  Major.  On 
the  7th  of  November,  of  the  same  year,  he  fell  at  the  head  of  his 
troops,  while  making  a  charge  on  the  Indians  in  the  celebrated  battle 
of  Tippecanoe. 

BON  HARBOR,  three  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is  im- 
proving very  rapidly,  and  promises  to  become  an  extensive  manufac- 
turing place.  As  its  name  implies,  it  has  an  excellent  harbor.  There 
is  a  fine  coal-mine  about  three-fourths  of  a  mile  back  of  it,  which 
furnishes  abundance  of  coal  of  .a  fine  quality.  A  railroad  extends 
from  the  mines  to  the  river.  One  of  the  largest  cotton  and  woolen 
manufactories  in  the  western  country  is  situated  here.  The  popula- 
tion of  the  place  is  about  two  hundred  and  fifty,  principally  consist- 
ing of  those  engaged  in  the  manufactory  and  mining. 


►,Le«i9Port 


54  THE   OHIO    RIVER. 

ENTERPRISE,  three  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  Spencei 
county,  Indiana.  The  country  adjacent  to  it,  is  a  rich,  level  bottom, 
heavily  timbered. 

POINT  ISABEL,  three  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  at  the 
head  of  French  Islands,  is  a  small  place,  with  six  or  seven  houses. 

NEWBURGH,  formerly  called  Sprinkleburgh,  thirteen  miles  be- 
low, in  Warrick  county.  la.,  is  a  flourishing  town  containing  three 
churches,  four  stores,  three  large  commission  warehouses,  one  saw 
and  grist  mill,  and  a  population  of  about  four  hundred.  It  has  grown 
rapidly  within  the  last  few  years,  almost  all  of  the  houses  being  new. 
The  country  in  the  rear  of  it  is  very  fertile,  and  lays  beautifully  for 
agricultural  purposes.      Booneville  is  the  county-seat. 

GREEN  RIVER,  six  miles  below,  in  Kentucky,  rises  in  the  cen- 
ter of  the  state,  and  takes  a  westerly  course,  until  having  received 
the  Big  Barren  River  on  the  south,  it  turns  to  the  northwest.  The 
current  is  gentle,  and  the  water  generally  deep.  It  is  made  naviga- 
ble by  means  of  locks  and  dams.  Steamboats  ascend  to  Bowling 
Green,  on  the  Big  Barren  River,  twenty  miles  below  the  Mammoth 
Cave,  and,  during  a  great  part  of  the  year,  to  the  cave,  a  distance  of 
one  hundred  and  sixty-five  miles,  bringing  down  large  quantities 
of  corn,  tobacco,  and  other  products. 

The  Mammoth  Cave  is  one  of  the  most  stupendous  wonders  of 
nature  that  has  ever  yet  been  discovered.  It  is  situated  in  Edmon- 
son county,  Ky.,  equi-distant  from  the  cities  of  Louisville  and  Nash- 
ville (about  ninety  miles  from  each),  and  immediately  on  the  nearest 
road  between  those  two  places.  It  is  within  half  a  mile  of  Green 
River.  A  full  description  of  its  many  avenues  and  wonderful  re- 
cesses, rivers,  &c,  may  be  found  in  a  work  published  by  Messrs.  Mor- 
ton &Griswold,  of  Louisville,  to  which  I  would  refer  all  who  may  wish 
to  learn  more  of  this  great  curiosity  than  space  can  be  afforded  for 
in  this  work.  The  cave  has  already  been  explored  for  more  than 
eighteen  miles,  and  it  is  supposed  that  even  this  is  but  scarcely  on 
the  threshold  of  its  vast  extent.  It  contains  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
six  avenues,  forty-seven  domes,  eight  cataracts,  several  rivers,  and 
twenty-three  pits,  most  of  them  of  surprising  beauty  and  startling 
grandeur.  It  is  visited  by  great  numbers  of  visiters,  and  fine  accom- 
modations have  been  made  for  them,  in  a  magnificent  hotel ;  where 
every  facility  of  guides,  &c.,  can  be  obtained  to  explore  the  cave.  I 
extract  some  brief  descriptions  of  it  from  the  work  already  referred 
to,  hoping  that  the  readers  will  obtain  it  and  satisfy  themselves  with 
a  more  extended  description : 

"  For  a  distance  of  two  miles  from  the  cave,  as  you  approach  it 
from  the  southeast,  the  country  is  level.  It  was,  until  recently,  a 
prairie,  on  which,  however,  the  oak,  chestnut,  and  hickory  are  now 
growing."  "  The  hotel  is  a  large  edifice,  two  hundred  feet  long  by 
forty  wide,  with  piazzas  extending  the  length  of  the  building  above 
and  below."  "The  cave  is  about  two  hundred  yards  from  the  hotel, 
and  you  proceed  to  it  down  a  lovely  and  romantic  dell,  rendered  urn 
brageous  by  a  forest  of  trees  and  grape-vines;  and,  passing  by  the 


THE    OHIO    RIVER.  55 

ruins  of  saltpetre  furnaces,  and  large  mounds  of  ashes,  you  turn  ab- 
ruptly to  the  right  and  behold  the  mouth  of  the  great  cavern,  and  as 
suddenly  feel  the  coldness  of  the  air.     It  is  an  appalling  spectacle — 
how  dark,  how  dismal,  how  dreary!     Descending  some  thirty  feet, 
down  rather  rude  steps  of  stone,  you  are  fairly  under  the  arch  of  this 
'nether  world' — before  you,  in  looking  outward,  is  seen  a  small  stream 
of  water  falling  from  the  face  of  a  crowning  rock,  with  a  wild,  pat- 
tering sound,  upon  the  ruins  below,  and  disappearing  in  a  deep  pit — 
behind  you,  all  is  gloom  and  darkness!     Obtaining  a  lamp  from  the 
o-uide,  you  follow  him  in  a  descending  course  for  about  a  hundred 
feet  when  the  passage  is  intercepted  by  a  rough  stone  wall,  the  en- 
trance to  which  is  closed  by  a  gate.     This  being  opened,  so  strong  is 
the  current  of  air,  that  the  lights  are  almost  instantaneously  extin- 
guished.    Relighting  the  lamps,  the  visiter  then  proceeds  to  the  great 
vestibule,  or  ante-chamber,  two  hundred  feet  in  length  by  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  wide,  with  a  roof  which  is  as  flat  and  level  as  if  fin- 
ished by  the  trowel  of  the  plasterer,  of  fifty,  or  sixty,  or  even  more, 
feet  in  "height.     Two  passages,  each  a  hundred  feet  in  width,  open 
into  it  at  opposite  extremities."     "Passing  on,  you  come  to  the  Great 
Bat  Room,  or  Audubon's  Avenue.     Here  the  workmen  who  were  en- 
gaged in  1814  in  manufacturing  saltpetre,  disinterred  many  skeletons 
of  'human  beings,  which  seemed  to  have  belonged  to  a  giant  race. 
Audubon's  Avenue  is  more  than  a  mile  long,  fifty  or  sixty  feet  wide, 
and  of  about  the  same  height.     Passing  the  Little  Bat  Room,  a  branch 
of  this  avenue,  you  enter  the  Main  Cave,  or  Grand  Gallery,  a  vast 
tunnel  extending  for  miles,  having  a  width  and  height  of  fifty  feet. 
Passing  down  this,  little  over  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  you  enter  the  Church, 
where  religious  services  have  often  been  performed.     It  is  about  one 
hundred  feet  in  diameter,  with  a  ceiling  sixty-three  feet  high,  having  a 
solid  projection  of  the  wall  about  fifteen  feet  from  the  floor,  serving 
as  a  pulpit,  and  back  of  it  a  place  for  an  organ  and  choir.     Proceed- 
ing a  short  distance,  you  arrive  at  the  Second  Hoppers,  where  are  to 
be  seen  the  remains  of  the  saltpetre  manufactories,  of  which  the  dirt 
of  the  cave  yields  such  immense  quantities.     During  the  war  of  1814, 
in  one  year,  the  contract  for  saltpetre  from  this  cave  amounted  to 
twenty  thousand  dollars.     Proceeding  along,  you  pass  through  the 
Gothic  Gallery,  Gothic  Avenue,  so  named   from  their  architectural 
shape.     The  avenue  is  two  miles  long,  about  forty  feet  wide  and  fif- 
teen high.     About  fifty  feet  from  the  head  of  the  stairs  leading  from 
the  main  avenue,  two  mummies  were  found  in  1813,  in  a  fine  state 
of  preservation.     One  of  them  was  a  female,    with  her  wardrobe 
and  ornaments  placed  at  her  side.     The  body  was  in  a  perfect  state 
of  preservation,  and  sitting  erect.     The  arms  were  folded,  and  the 
hands  laid  across  the  bosom.     Around  the  wrists  was  wound  a  small 
cord,  designed,  probably,  to  keep  them  in  the  posture  in  which  they 
were  first  placed.     Around  the  body  and  neck,  there  were  wrapped 
two  deer-skins.     These  skins  appear  to  have  been  dressed  in  some 
mode  different  from  what  is  now  practiced  by  any  people  of  whom 
we  have  any  knowledge.     The  hair  of  the  skins  was  cut  off  very 
near  the  surface,  and  they  were  ornamented  with  the  imprints  of  vines 
and  leaves,  which  were  sketched  with  a  substance  perfectly  white. 


56  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

Outside  of  these  two  skins  was  a  large  square  sheet,  which  was  either 
wove  or  knit.     The  fabric  was  of  the  inner   bark  of  a  tree,  resem- 
bling the  South  Sea  Island  cloth  or  matting."     The  body  was  about 
five  feet  ten  inches  in  length,  and  weighed  but  fourteen  pounds.     At 
its  side  lay  a  pair  of  moccasins,  a  knapsack  and  reticule,  all  made 
very  neatly  of  knit  or  woven  bark.     Other  articles  of  apparel  were 
found  in  the  knapsack,  which  evidenced  great  skill  in  their  manufacture. 
Proceeding  on,  you  pass  the  Stalagmite  Hall  or  Gothic.  Chapel, 
which  "forcibly  reminds  one  of  the  old  cathedrals  of  Europe."     A 
large  number  of  beautiful  chambers  follow,  which  have  appropriate 
names,  and  are  all  matters  of  great  curiosity,  but  which  we  have  not 
space  to  mention.     The  Star  Chamber,  further  on,  "presents  the 
most  perfect  optical  illusion  imaginable.     In  looking  up  to  the  ceiling, 
which  is  very  high,  you  seem  to  see  the  very  firmament  itself,  stud- 
ed  with  stars,  and  afar  off  a  comet  with  its  long  bright  tail."     Fur- 
ther on  is  the  chief  city  or  Temple,  which  is  thus  described  by  Lee,  in 
his  "Notes  on  the  Mammoth  Cave:"  "The  Temple  is  an  immense 
vault,  covering  an  area  of  two  acres,  and  covered  by  a  single  dome 
of  solid  rock,  one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  high.     It  excels  in  size 
the  Cave  of  Staffa;  and  rivals  the  celebrated  vault  in  the  Grotto  of  An- 
tiparos,  which  is  said  to  be  the  largest  in  the  world."     *    *    "Everyone 
has  heard  of  the  dome  of  the  Mosque  of  St.  Sophia,  of  St.  Peter's 
and  St.  Paul's;  they  are  never  spoken  of  but  in  terms  of  admiration, 
as  the  chief  works  of  architecture,  and  among  the  noblest  and  most 
stupendous  examples  of  what  man  can  do,  when  aided  by  science; 
and  yet,  when  compared  with  the  dome  of  this  Temple,  they  sink 
Into  comparative  insignificance.     Such  is  the  surpassing  grandeur 
of  Nature's  works."     There  is  also  the  Great  Dome,  four  hundred 
feet  high,  with  a  waterfall  from  its  summit;  the  River  Hall,  the  ceil- 
ing of  which   "stretches  away  before  you,  vast  and   grand   as   the 
firmament  at  midnight;"  the  Dead  Sea  and  River  Styx,  which  seem  to 
answer  well  their  names,  and.  the  Echo,  a  river  "  wide  and  deep  enough 
to  float  the  largest  steamer."     In  these  rivers  are  found  the  remark- 
able eyeless  fish,  having  not  the  least  indication  of  an  eye,  or  any 
organ  similar  to  it.     Four  miles  beyond  the  Echo,  is  Cleveland's 
Avenue,  after  entering  which  you  may  ascend  a  steep  and  rugged 
hill  about  twenty  feet   high,  and  find  yourself  at  the  Chapel  of  the 
Holy  Sepulcher,  about  twelve  feet  square,  decorated  with   stalactite 
in  a  most  beautiful  manner.     A  passage  conducts  into  a  room  a  few 
feet  below  the  chapel,  in  which  stands  a  grave,  having  the  appear- 
ance of  having  been  hewn  out  of  a  living  rock.     Cleveland's  Avenue 
is  three  miles  long,  and  adorned  with  most  beautiful  formations  of 
crystals.     There  are  many  other  places  of  great  interest,  and  which 
strike  the  beholder  with  admiration  and  awe.     The  cave  is  dry,  and 
exceedingly  conducive  to  health.     It  is  visited  by  many  invalids,  for 
the  purpose  of  inhaling  its  air;  and  in  many  instances  proved  highly 
beneficial.     It  should  be  visited  by  all   who  can  do  so,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  witnessing  one  of  the  most  sublime  and  gigantic  works  of 
nature  to  be  seen  in  any  country. 

EVANSVILLE,  eight  and  a-half  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat 


Green  K. 


58  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

of  Vanderburgh  county,  la.  It  is  situated  on  a  finely  elevated  bank, 
and  shows  to  considerable  advantage,  in  ascending  and  descending 
the  river.  It  is  a  place  of  considerable  commercial  importance,  de- 
riving a  great  trade  from  the  Wabash  River  and  the  rich  country  in 
the  interior.  A  canal  is  about  being  constructed  (20  miles  of  which 
is  complete),  connecting  it  with  Terre  Haute  on  the  Wabash,  which 
will  give  a  continuous  chain  of  navigation  to  the  lakes  on  the  North 
and  the  Eastern  cities.  Evansville  is  well  and  compactly  built,  and 
contains  several  churches,  a  male  and  female  academy  three  printing- 
offices  ( two  publishing  daily  papers  ),  a  large  number  of  stores,  a 
branch  of  the  State  Bank  of  Indiana,  a  large  flouring  mill,  a  saw 
mill,  wool  carding  factory,  several  other  manufactories,  a  distillery, 
Slc.  Arrangements  are  being  made  to  build  a  fine  wharf,  which  will 
add  greatly  to  its  appearance  and  business.  The  population  is  about 
4,500.  The  country  adjacent  is  very  fertile,  and  is  being  rapidly  set- 
tied.  About  one  mile  in  the  interior  are  the  Pigeon  Springs,  a  fine 
watering  place,  and  well  fitted  up  for  the  accommodation  of  visitors. 

HENDERSON,  twelve  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Hender- 
son county,  Ky.  It  is  a  flourishing  place,  and  the  principal  shipping- 
port  for  the  produce  of  the  country  bordering  on  Green  river,  export- 
ing large  quantities  of  tobacco,  corn,  &c.  It  contains  a  court  house, 
six  churches,  four  schools,  twelve  stores  and  groceries,  five  large  to- 
bacco factories,  ^md  a  population  of  about  1,500.  The  country  adja- 
cent is  highly  adapted  to  the  cultivation  of  tobacco  and  corn.  Iron 
ore  is  also  found  in  it,  and  large  beds  of  stone  coal,  of  an  excellent 
quality.  About  75,000  bushels  of  corn,  and  7,000,000  lbs.  of  tobacco 
are  annually  exported  from  it. 

MOUNT  VERNON,  twenty-six  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of 
Posey  county,  la.,  and  contains  a  population  of  one  thousand. 

UNIONTOWN,  ten  miles  below,  at  the  mouth  of  Highland  creek 
rn  Union  county,  Ky.,  is  a  thriving  town,  shipping  large  quantities 
of  corn  to  the  Southern  markets.  It  contains  five  stores  and  groceries, 
and  a  population  of  300.  The  country  is  very  fertile,  yielding  fine 
crops  of  corn.  A  few  miles  from  Uniontown,  on  Highland  creek,  is 
a  fine  Tar  spring.  There  are  a  number  of  curiosities  in  this  county, 
worthy  of  observation.  One  is  a  large  flat  rock,  with  perfect  impres- 
sions of  the  naked  feet  of  men  and  animals  deeply  imprinted  in  it. 
A  few  miles  from  CaseyVille  is  a  singular  rock,  fifty  feet  high,  two 
feet  thick,  and  twenty  wide,  resembling  a  blacksmith's  anvil,  from 
which  appearance  it  has  derived  the  name  of  "Anvil  Rock."  There 
is  also  a  subterranean  cavern,  which  is  thought  to  be  of  great  extent, 
but  has  not  yet  been  explored  to  a  great  distance. 

WABASH  RIVER,  five  miles  below,  in  Indiana.  This  beautiful 
river  takes  its  rise  in  the  north-western  part  of  the  state  of  Ohio,  and 
passing  in  a  south-western  direction  through  the  state  of  Indiana, 
bends  to  the  south,  and  forms  the  boundary  between  the  state  of  In 
diana  and  Illinois.  It  is  navigable  for  the  common  river  craft  about 
four  hundred  miles  ;  and  has  been  ascended  by  steam  boats  to  Terre 


THE    OHIO    RIVER.  59 

Haute  and  Lafayette.  It  receives,  in  its  course,  the  waters  of  many 
respectable  tributaries,  among  the  most  important  of  which  is  White 
river,  which  passes  through  the  state-  from  east  to  west,  and  waters 
a  great  extent  of  fertile  and  well  settled  country.  Perhaps  no  river 
in  the  world,  of  its  magnitude,  drains  a  more  extensive  and  fertile 
country  than  the  Wabash  and  its  tributaries.  It  forms  the  heart  of 
the  state  of  Indiana ;  and  most  of  this  great  body  of  land  has  already 
been  purchased,  and  taken  up  by  actual  settlers.  For  a  number  of 
years,  the  immigration  from  the  Eastern  States,  and  also  from  West- 
ern Virginia  and  Ohio,  has  been  very  large  ;  and  under  the  judicious 
cultivation  of  the  settlers,  much  of  the  disease  (fever  and  ague)  which 
operated  so  severely  against  the  early  occupants,  has  ceased. 

VINCENNES  is  situated  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Wabash,  one 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  above  its  mouth.  This  place,  after  Kaskas- 
kia,  is  the  oldest  settled  place  in  the  western  world.  It  was  settled  by 
the  French,  in  1735.  It  is  contiguous  to  a  large  and  beautiful  prairie, 
five  thousand  acres  of  which  are  cultivated  as  a  common  field,  after 
the  ancient  French  custom.  It  was  for  a  long  time  the  seat  of  the 
territorial  government,  and  still  has  more  trade  than  any  other  place 
in  the  state.  The  site  of  the  town  is  level,  and  laid  off  with  much 
taste.  The  houses  have  extensive  gardens  back  of  them,  filled,  after 
the  French  fashion,  with  crowded  fruit  trees.  It  has,  of  late,  rapidly 
improved,  and  contains  between  three  and  four  hundred  houses. 

NEW  HARMONY,  fifty-four  miles  below  Vincennes,  is  also  situ- 
ated on  the  east  bank  of  this  river,  and  is  sixteen  miles  from  the 
nearest  point  of  the  Ohio,  though  about  one  hundred  miles  from  the 
mouth  of  the  Wabash,  following  the  meanders  of  the  river.  It  is 
surrounded  by  a  fine,  rich,  and  heavily  timbered  country,  interspersed 
with  small,  rich  prairies.  Its  situation  is  high,  healthy,  and  well 
chosen.  It  was  first  settled  in  1814,  by  a  religious  sect  of  Germans, 
called  Harmonites,  under  the  guidance  and  control  of  George  Rapp, 
in  whose  name  all  the  lands  and  property  were  held.  They  soon 
erected  about  one  hundred  large  and  substantial  buildings.  They 
laid  their  lands  off  with  the  most  perfect  regularity,  and  were  won- 
derfully successful  in  converting  a  wilderness  into  a  finely  cultivated 
plantation,  in  a  short  time.  They  had  even  the  luxury  of  a  botanic 
garden,  and  a  green  house.  Their  great  house  of  assemblage,  with 
its  wings  and  appendages,  was  nearly  one  hundred  feet  square. 
There  they  continued  to  live  and  labor  in  common,  until  the  year 
1824,  when  the  celebrated  Robert  Owen,  of  New  Lanark,  in  Scotland, 
came  and  purchased  out  the  entire  possession  of  the  Harmonites,  at 
the  sum  of  one  hundred  and  ninety  thousand  dollars,  for  the  purpose 
of  establishing  a  community  upon  the  plan  of  his  «  social  system," 
and  corresponding  with  his  "  new  views  of  society."  He  was  joined 
by  two  of  his  sons,  and  by  Mr.  M'Clure,  a  wealthy  man  from  Scot- 
land :  and  in  a  short  time  his  new  community  swelled  to  above  seven 
hundred  persons.  But  discord  soon  rose  among  its  members,  and  one 
after  another  left  the  community,  until  the  "social  system"  was  at 
length  abandoned. 


60  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

There  are  several  places  of  considerable  importance  on  this  river, 
among  which  are  Terre  Haute,  205  miles  from  the  mouth,  and  La- 
fayette, 312  miles.  The  Wabash  and  Erie  Canal  extends  from  this 
latter  place  to  the  Miami  Canal  at  Junction,  giving  thereby  a  contin- 
uous navigation  to  Cincinnati,  on  the  Ohio,  and  to  Toledo,  on  the 
Lakes.  From  Lafayette  to  Cincinnati,  by  canal,  is  330  miles ;  to 
Toledo,  250. 

RALEIGH,  six  miles  below,  is  a  collection  of  a  few  houses,  in 
Union  county,  Ky. 

SHAWNEETOWN,  five  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Galla- 
tin county,  Illinois.  It  has  a  very  pleasant  looking  situation,  but  is 
liable  to  be  overflown,  and  is  generally  considered  healthy.  It  is 
a  point  of  great  business,  and  large  shipments  of  corn  and  other  pro- 
duce are  made.  It  was  laid  out  in  1814,  and  contains,  at  present, 
three  churches,  a  United  States  land  office,  a  number  of  stores,  a 
court  house,  a  fine  banking  house,  and  about  1,200  inhabitants.  It 
acquired  considerable  celebrity  by  its  celebrated  bank  explosion,  in 
1843.  Twelve  miles  in  the  interior,  are  the  great  United  States  Sa- 
lines. 

CASEYVILLE,  ten  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  Union  county, 
Ky.,  containing  a  population  of  about  200.  There  is  an  abundant 
supply  of  fine  stone  coal  in  its  vicinity. 

BATTERY  ROCK,  two  miles  below,  in  Illinois,  is  a  high,  rocky 
bluff,  extending  for  some  miles  along  the  river,  giving  a  highly  pic- 
turesque appearance  to  the  scenery. 

CAVE-IN-ROCK,  twelve  miles  below,  is  a  much  celebrated  place, 
and  viewed  with  interest  by  all  travelers  on  this  river.  It  was  the 
rendezvous,  about  the  year  1801,  of  a  celebrated  outlaw,  by  the  namo 
of  Mason,  and  his  comrades,  who  subsisted  by  plundering  the  flat- 
boats  and  arks,  which  descended  the  river  with  produce,  or  waylay- 
ing the  traders,  on  their  return  from  New  Orleans,  with  the  produce 
of  their  sales — robbing  and  murdering  them.  They  continued  their 
nefarious  business  for  several  years,  until  their  depredations  became 
so  alarming,  that  the  Governor  of  Mississippi  offered  a  reward  of  five 
hundred  dollars  for  Mason's  head.  Mason  was  shot,  and  his  head 
carried  to  Washington,  then  the  capital  of  Mississippi,  by  one  of  his 
own  band,  named  Harpe,  a  notorious  outlaw,  who  had  escaped  from 
Kentucky.  The  following  description  of  the  cave  is  given  by  a  vis- 
itor to  it: 

"Perhaps  one  of  the  most  beautiful  panoramic  views  which  the 
traveler  meets  in  our  extensive  country,  is  afforded  by  the  bold,  rocky 
bluffs,  with  the  intervening  valleys,  which  meet  the  eye,  as  one  de- 
scends the  stream.  Cedars  cover  the  high  woodlands  above  and  be- 
low the  cave,  and  civilization,  which  has  extended  its  rnde  hand  over 
all  the  surrounding  country,  has  left  this  romantic  spot  untouched. 
The  entrance  to  the  cave  is  nearly  semi-circular  ;  and  when  the  river 
is  high,  it  is  on  a  level  with  the  water.  The  passage,  which  is  twenty 
feet  high,  affords  admission  into  a  spacious  square  apartment,  whose 


62  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

dimensions  may  be  fairly  stated  at  about  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  feet.  Above  the  room  is  a  magnificent  chamber,  whose  natural 
limestone  formations  greatly  resemble  the  carvings  of  a  Gothic  ca- 
thedral. The  entrance  to  this  beautiful  room  is  by  a  chimney,  so  to 
speak,  in  the  roof  of  the  first.  An  opening  at  one  end  of  the  cave 
leads  into  a  deep  vault,  extending  far  into  the  heart  of  the  rock,  and 
the  traveler  may  amuse  himself,  by  counting  the  many  seconds  which 
elapse,  between  the  time  when  a  stone  is  cast  into  the  abyss,  and  the 
return  of  its  reverberations." 

ELIZABETH,  six  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  Pope  county, 
Illinois,  at  the  foot  of  Hurricane  island.  There  are  some  iron  furna- 
ces a  short  distance  in  the  interior. 

GOLCONDA,  twenty-three  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Pope 
county,  111.  It  is  very  beautifully  situated  on  an  elevated  plain,  and 
contains  a  court  house,  several  stores,  and  a  population  of  about  200. 

CUMBERLAND  RIVER,  fifteen  miles  below,  is  one  of  the  largest 
and  most  important  streams  in  Kentucky.  It  empties  in  on  the  left, 
opposite  the  island'.  This  is  one  of  the  largest  rivers  of  Kentucky. 
It  takes  its  rise  from  the  Cumberland  mountains,  and  interlocks  with 
the  head-waters  of  Clinch  and  Kentucky  rivers ;  flows  through  the 
state,  westwardly,  more  than  two  hundred  miles;  enters  the  state  of 
Tennessee,  and,  meandering  one  hundred  and  twenty  miles,  reaches 
Nashville,  nearly  in  latitude  35°  N. ;  from  thence,  flowing  N.  W.,  fol- 
lowing its  meanders  two  hundred  miles,  when  it  joins  the  Ohio,  as 
above  stated.  It  is  navigable  for  steam  boats  as  far  as  Nashville,  in 
ordinary  good  stages  of  water  ;  and  for  flat  and  keel  boats  to  a  much 
greater  distance.  Below  Nashville  the  river  is  deep  and  narrow, 
and,  for  its  size,  well  calculated  for  navigation.  Its  banks  are  but 
thinly  settled. 

NASHVILLE,  the  largest  town  in  Tennessee,  and  the  commercial 
capital  of  the  state,  is  pleasantly  situated  on  the  south  shore  of  the 
Cumberland.  The  site  of  the  town  consists  of  one  entire  rock,  cov- 
ered, in  some  places,  by  a  thin  soil.  It  is  a  place  of  great  trade,  and 
is  rapidly  rising  into  importance.  Its  steam-boat  navigation  gives  it 
decided  advantages  over  every  other  place  near  it.  A  number  of 
large,  first  rate  steam-boats  are  owned  by  citizens  of  the  place,  and 
gives  to  it  a  character  of  enterprise  and  activity,  possessed  by  few 
towns  of  the  same  size.  It  is  much  frequented  by  the  people  of  the 
lower  country  during  the  sultry  months.  It  has  a  number  of  hand- 
some private  mansions,  and  respectable  public  buildings,  and  contains 
about  15,000  inhabitants.  There  is  a  college  here  of  rising  reputa- 
tion ;  and  Nashville  is,  after  New  Orleans,  Cincinnati,  Pittsburgh,  St. 
Louis, and  Louisville,  the  next  largest  town  in  the  western  country. 

SMITHLAND,  at  the  lower  side  of  the  mouth  of  Cumberland 
river,  in  Livingston  county,  Ky.,  is  a  place  of  some  importance,  en- 
joying considerable  trade  with  the  interior  of  Tennessee  ;  being  a 
point  for  the  re-shipment  of  goods,  destined  up  the  Cumberland.      It 


64  THE    OHIO    RIVER. 

contains  two  churches,  several  stores  and  groceries,  a  foundry,  steam- 
engine  factory,  boat  yard,  and  a  very  extensive  tannery.  Population, 
one  thousand. 

TENNESSEE  RIVER,  twelve  miles  below,  is  the  largest  branch 
of  the  Ohio,  and  is  navigable  for  large  boats  more  than  six  hundred 
miles.  It  rises  in  the  northwest  part  of  Virginia,  and  traverses  the 
whole  width  of  East  Tennessee,  in  a  south-western  direction,  and 
entering  the  north-east  angle  of  the  state  of  Alabama,  the  whole 
width  of  which  it  crosses,  and  turning  just  at  the  north-west  angle  of 
that  state,  it  pursues  a  north  direction,  nearly  in  a  direct  line  with  the 
western  boundary  of  that  state,  across  the  width  of  Tennessee,  and 
a  part  of  Kentucky,  to  the  Ohio  river.  Its  whole  course,  from  its 
source  to  the  Ohio,  is  longer  than  that  river,  from  Pittsburgh  to  its 
mouth,  being-,  by  its  meanders,  nearly  twelve  hundred  miles.  It  has 
been  questioned,  whether  it  does  not  discharge  as  much  water  at  its 
entrance  into  the  Ohio,  as  that  river  above  its  entrance.  It  is  suscept- 
ible of  boat  navigation  for  at  least  one  thousand  miles ;  and  steam 
boats,  of  the  largest  size,  ascend  it  as  high  as  Florence,  in  the  state 
of  Alabama,  situated  on  the  north  bank,  at  the  foot  of  Muscle  Shoals. 

FLORENCE,  standing  at  the  head  of  steam-boat  navigation  on 
the  Tennessee,  possesses,  as  might  well  be  expected,  very  decided 
commercial  advantages,  and  is  fast  rising  into  importance.  It  has  a 
great  and  increasing  intercourse  with  New  Orleans.  It  contains 
about  one  thousand  five  hundred  inhabitants,  and  has  a  very  hand- 
some  court-house  and  hotel,  in  city  style. 

PADUCAH,  at  the  lower  side  of  the  mouth  of  the  Tennessee  riv 
er,  is  the  county-seat  of  McCracken  county,  Ky.  It  has  a  fine  range 
of  stores  fronting  the  river,  four  churches,  and  a  commodious  hotel. 
It  is  the  depot  for  the  vast  and  growing  trade  of  the  Tennessee  river. 
It  was  laid  out  in  1827,  and  named  after  the  celebrated  Indian  chief, 
Paducah.     Population,  two  thousand. 

BELGRADE,  eight  miles  below,  is  a  small  village,  in  Illinois,  con- 
taining only  a  few  houses. 

FORT  MASSAC,  two  miles  below,  in  Illinois.  This  was  the 
point  of  rendezvous  for  the  troops  sent  to  intercept  the  famous  expe- 
dition of  Burr.  The  fort  was  burnt  down,  a  few  years  ago,  and  noth- 
ing of  it  is  to  be  seen  now,  but  some  rubbish,  that  marks  its  former 
site. 

METROPOLIS,  one  mile  below,  in  Illinois,  is  a  newly  laid  out 
town,  on  a  high  bank,  presenting  a  very  eligible  location. 

HILLAMAN,  seven  miles  below,  is  laid  out  on  a  low  plat  of  ground. 
It  contains  about  fifteen  or  twenty  small  frame  houses,  most  of  which 
appear  to  be  deserted. 

WILKINSONVILLE,  nine  miles  below,  in  Illinois,  is  a  collection 
of  a  few  small  houses. 


Ohio  City.iii 


66  .      THE-  OHIO    RIVER. 

CALEDONIA,  ten  miles  below,  in  Illinois,  is  about  the  size  ol 
Wilkinsonville. 

AMERICA,  two  and  one-half  miles  below,  in  Illinois,  is  a  small 
place,  with  a  few  dilapidated  houses. 

TRINITY,  five  and  one-half  miles  below,  at  the  mouth  of  Cash 
river,  in  Illinois,  contains  two  houses.  It  is  a  landing  and  laying 
up  point  for  steamboats,  in  low  water. 

CAIRO,  five  and  one-half  miles  below,  at  the  junction  of  the  Ohio 
and  Mississippi  rivers,  has  acquired  considerable  celebrity  by  the  re- 
peated attempts  which  have  been  made,  to  build  up  a  large  city  on 
its  site.  Situated,  as  it  is,  at  the  junction  of  these  two  mighty  rivers, 
it,  undoubtedly,  presents  one  of  the  finest  points  for  a  city  which  can 
be  found  in  the  West ;  being  placed  so  as  to  command  the  immense 
and  incalculable  trade  of  the  whole  west,  north-west,  and  south. 
But,  there  are  difficulties  to  Be  surmounted,  in  the  location  of  the 
ground,  and  the  surrounding  country,  which  will  take  an  immense 
amount  of  capital  and  labor.  That  it  will  ultimately  repay  all  the 
outlays  that  may  be  made,  the  writer  has  no  doubt.  But,  that  it  will 
be  able  to  do  this  as  soon  as  other  sites,  no  one  will  pretend.  The 
banks  of  the  river  are  here  very  low,  and  the  surrounding  country  is 
still  lower.  Both  are  subject  to  overflow,  and  from  the  marshy  na- 
ture of  the  soil  are  generated  miasms,  which  render  it  very  unhealthy. 
But,  by  a  scientific  system  of  embankment,  filling  up,  and  draining, 
all  this  may  be  overcome.  A  levee  has  been  thrown  up,  which  pro- 
tects it,  to  a  great  degree.  Every  one  who  looks  at  it,  and  reflects 
what  must  have  been  the  situation  of  New  Orleans,  at  an  early  day, 
must  be  convinced  that  the  same  kind  of  labor,  bestowed  here,  will 
protect  it  against  overflows,  &c,  equally  as  well  as  New  Orleans. 
No  one  disputes  the  eligibility  of  the  position  ;  but  the  failures,  which 
have  heretofore  been  made,  seem  to  have  inspired  every  one  with 
the  idea,  that  all  attempts  to  build  a  city  here,  would  end  in  failures. 
But  those  failures  have  originated,  in  a  great  degree,  from  the  man- 
ner in  which  the  English  company  (who  purchased  it,  some  years 
ago)  undertook  to  monopolize,  not  only  the  land,  for  the  site  of  the 
city,  but  also  for  miles  in  the  interior.  They  commenced  their  opera- 
tions by  throwing  a  levee  around  the  point,  erecting  a  foundry,  sev- 
eral large  buildings,  and  a  number  of  dwellings,  all  to  be  owned  by 
themselves,  giving  only,  to  settlers,  the  right  of  leasing  from  them. 
A  number  of  persons  emigrated  here,  and  when  the  sickly  season 
came  on,  they  suffered  severely  with  it.  Having  no  interest  in  the 
soil,  they  became  discouraged,  and  left,  and  the  place  dwindled  down, 
until  it  had  become  almost  unoccupied.  Recently,  another  company 
have  undertaken  to  build  it  up,  and  not  without  some  hopes  of  doing 
something.  If  sufficient  inducements  are  held  out  to  persons  to  re- 
move and  remain  there,  it  may  yet,  under  a  wise  system  of  improve- 
ment, approximate,  in  some  degree,  to  the  ideas  of  its  first  projec- 
tors. It  now  contains  only  a  few  straggling  houses,  the  remnants  of 
the  enterprise  of  its  former  proprietors.  These,  however,  are  now 
being  tenanted  by  a  somewhat  enterprising  set  of  inhabitants.     A  very 


THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 


67 


good  newspaper  has  been  recently  started  here.     The  population  is 
about  one  hundred  and  fifty. 


THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

The  Mississippi  is  the  largest  and  most  magnificent  river  in  the 
United  States.     Its  source  is  in  a  small  lake,  called  Itasca,  situated  in 
a  region  of  swamps  and  Avild  rice  lakes,  fifteen  hundred  feet  above 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  near  the  48°  of  N.  latitude,  audit  flows  into  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico,  in  29°  N.  latitude.      It  is  formed  of  many  small 
branches ;  but,  before  it  traverses  a  great  distance,  becomes  a  broad 
stream,  moving  a  wide  expanse  of  waters,  with  a'  current  scarcely 
perceptible — sometimes  along  a  marshy  bed — through  interminable 
swamps ;    at  others,  over  a  while  sand  bottom,  with  its  waters  trans- 
parent, and  at  others,  "it  is  compressed  to  a  narrow  and  rapid  cur- 
rent, between  ancient  and  hoary  limestone  bluffs.     A  great  number 
of  streams,  rising  in  the  same  plateau,  and  interlocking  with  the  wa- 
ters of  Red  River,  and  other  streams  of  Lake  Winnipeg,  unite  to  form 
the  St.  Peters  and  Mississippi."     The  following  are  among  the  most 
•■onsiderable  of  its  tributaries:  Rapid,  St.  Croix,  Cannon  River,  Buf- 
falo  Bluff,  Black,  Root,  Upper  Ioway,   Yellow,  Bad  Axe,  Wiscon- 
sin (this  last  river  comes   in   from  the  east,  near  Prairie  du  Chien. 
It  has  a  boatable  course  of  more  than  two  hundred  miles,  and  inter- 
locks, by  a  short  portage,  with  Fox  river,  which  empties  into  Green 
Bay.     It  is  the  liquid  highway  of  passage  for  the  Canadian  traders, 
trappers,  and  savages,  from  Mackinaw,  and  the  lakes,  to  the  Missis- 
sippi), Turkey  river,  La  Mine,  Fever  river,  Tete  de  Mort,  Wipisipi- 
nacon,  Little  Loutour,  Rock  river,  loway,   Des   Moines  (this  river 
is  one  of  the  largest  tributaries  above  the  Missouri,  and  has  a  boat- 
able   course  of  three   hundred  miles),  Waconda,  Fabian,   Justioni, 
Oahaka,  or  Salt  river,  Bceuf  of  Cuivre,  Dardenne,  Illinois  (a  noble, 
broad,  and  deep  stream,  having  a  course  of  about  four  hundred  miles, 
and  boatable  almost  the  whole  distance),  Missouri,  Maramec,  Kaskas- 
kia,  Big  Muddy,  Ohio,  Wolf,  St.  Francis,  White  river,  Arkansas,  Ya- 
zoo, Red  river,  and  Bayou  Sara.*     Eleven  hundred  miles  below  its 
source,  and  seven  hundred  and  seventy-one  above  St.  Louis,  are  the 
Falls  of  St.  Anthony.     Here  the  river  is  about  six  hundred  yards 
wide,  and  is  precipitated  over  a  ledge  of   limestone,  seventeen  feet 
high.     The  scenery  around  the  falls  is  grand  and  imposing,  and  af- 
fords a  fine  treat  to  visitors,  many  of  whom  travel  here  every  year, 
to  witness  this  sublime  and  beautiful  spot.     Below  this  point,  the  riv- 
er is  bounded  by  limestone  bluffs,  from  one  hundred  to  four  hundred 
feet  high,  and  first  begins  to  exhibit  islands.      Its  current  is  broke  by 
the  Rapids,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Rock  river  and  Des  Moines,  which 
partially  obstruct  navigation,  for  a  portion  of  the  summer.      The 
scenery  along  the  Upper,  or  Rock  River  Rapids,  is  most  beautiful. 

*  Flint's  Geography. 


68  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

On  the  western  side,  the  land  rises  in  gentle  slopes,  which  are  ter- 
minated in  the  distance  by  a  beautiful  chain  of  hills.  On  the  oppo- 
site side,  a  broad,  flat  plain,  of  more  than  a  mile  in  width,  and  sev- 
eral miles  in  length,  presents  itself.  There  is  a  small  village  of  the 
Sacs  and  Fox  Indians,  on  this  plain.  The  celebrated  Black  Hawk 
War  originated  in  the  determination  of  these  Indians  to  maintain 
possession  of  this  beautiful  tract  of  country.  "  Below  the  rapids,  the 
river  assumes  its  medial  width  and  character  from  that  point  to  the 
entrance  of  the  Missouri.  It  is  a  still  more  beautiful  river  than  the 
Ohio ;  somewhat  gentler  in  its  current — a  third  wider,  with  broad, 
clean  sand-bars,  except  in  time  of  high  waters,  when  they  are  all 
covered.  At  every  little  distance,  there  are  islands,  sometimes  a  num- 
ber of  them  parallel,  and  broadening  the  stream  to  a  great  width. 
These  islands,  are,  many  of  them,  large,  and  have,  in  the  summer 
season,  an  aspect  of  beauty,  as  they  swell  gently  from  the  the  clear 
stream,  a  vigor  and  grandeur  of  vegetation,  which  contribute  much 
to  the  magnificence  of  the  river." 

"  Where  it  receives  the  Missouri,  it  is  a  mile  and  a  half  wide.  The 
Missouri,  itself,  enters  with  a  mouth  not  more  than  half  a  mile  wide. 
The  united  streams  below  have  thence,  to  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio,  a 
medial  width  of  little  more  than  half  a  mile.  This  mighty  tributary 
seems  rather  to  diminish,  than  increase  its  width  ;  but  it  perceptibly 
alters  its  depth,  its  mass  of  waters,  and,  what  is  to  be  regretted,  whol- 
ly changes  its  character.  It  is  no  longer  the  gentle,  placid  stream, 
with  smooth  shores,  and  clean  sand  bars  ;  but  has  a  furious  and  boil- 
ing current,  a  turbid  and  dangerous  mass  of  sweeping  waters,  jagged 
and  dilapidated  shores,  and,  wherever  its  waters  have  receded,  depos- 
its of  mud.  It  remains  a  sublime  object  of  contemplation ;  but  its 
character  of  calm  magnificence,  that  so  delighted  the  eye  above,  is 
seen  no  more."*  The  surface  of  the  river  is  covered  with  huge' boils 
or  swells,  which  render  it  a  matter  of  considerable  difficulty,  in  some 
places,  to  navigate  a  boat.  "  In  its  course,  accidental  circumstances 
shift  the  impetus  of  its  current,  and  propel  it  upon  the  point  of  an 
island,  bend,  or  sand-bar.  In  these  instances,  it  tears  up  the  island, 
removes  the  sand-bars,  and  sweeps  away  the  tender,  alluvial  soil  of 
the  bends,  with  all  their  trees,  and  deposits  the  spoils  in  another  place. 
At  the  season  of  high  waters,  nothing  is  more  familiar  to  the  ears  of 
the  people  on  the  river,  than  the  deep  crash  of  a  landslip,  in  which 
larger  or  smaller  masses  of  the  soil  on  the  banks,  with  all  the  trees, 
are  plunged  into  the  stream.  Such  is  its  character,  from  the  Missou- 
ri to  the  Balize — a  wild,  furious,  whirling  river,  never  navigated 
safely,  except  with  great  danger. 

"No  person  who  descends  this  riverfor  the  first  time,  receives  clear 
and  adequate  ideas  of  its  grandeur,  and  the  amount  of  water  which 
it  carries.  If  it  be  in  the  spring,  when  the  river  below  the  mouth  of 
the  Ohio  is  generally  over  its  banks,  although  the  sheet  of  water  that  is 
making  its  way  to  the  gulf,  is,  perhaps,  thirty  miles  wide,  yet,  find- 
ing its  way  through  deep  forests  and  swamps,  that  conceal  all  from 
the  eye,  no  expanse  of  water  is  seen,  but  the  width,  that  is  curved 

♦Fliut'8   Geography. 


MISSISSIPPI. 
No.  1. 


Cahokia 


nam\\. 


70  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

out  between  the  outline  of  woods  on  either  bank  ;  and  it  seldom  ex- 
ceeds, and  oftener  falls  short  of  a  mile.  But  when  he  sees,  in  de- 
scending from'  the  falls  of  St.  Anthony,  that  it  swallows  up  one  river 
after  another,  with  months  as  wide  as  itself,  without  affecting  its 
width  at  all — when  he  sees  it  receiving  in  succession  the  mighty  Mis- 
souri, the  broad  Ohio,  St.  Francis,  White,  Arkansas,  and  Red  rivers, 
all  of  them  of  great  depth,  length,  and  volume  of  water — when  he 
sees  this  mighty  river  absorbing  them  all,  and  retaining  a  volume, 
apparently  unchanged,  he  begins  to  estimate  rightly  the  increasing 
depth  of  current,  that  must  roll  on  in  its  deep  channel  to  the  sea. 
Carried  out  of  the  Balize,  and  sailing  with  a  good  breeze  for  hours,, 
he  sees  nothing  on  any  side  but  the  white  and  turbid  waters  of  the 
Mississippi,  long  after  he  is  out  of  sight  of  land. 

'•'Between  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio  and  St.  Louis,  on  the  west  side  of 
the  river,  the  bluffs  are  generally  near  it,  seldom  diverging  from  it 
more  than  two  miles.  They  are  for  the  most  part,  perpendicular  mass- 
es of  limestone ;  sometimes  shooting  up  into  towers  and  pinnacles, 
presenting,  as  Mr.  Jefferson  well  observed,  at  a  distance,  the  aspect  of 
the  battlements  and  towers  of  an  ancient  city.  Sometimes  the  river 
sweeps  the  base  of  these  perpendicular  bluffs,  as  happens  at  the  Cor- 
nice rocks,  and  at  the  cliffs  above  St.  Genevieve.  They  rise  here,  be- 
tween two  and  three  hundred  feet  above  the  level  of  the  river.  There 
are  many  imposing  spectacles  of  this  sort  near  the  western  bank  of 
the  Mississippi,  in  this  distance.  We  may  mention  among  them,  that 
gigantic  mass  of  rocks,  forming  a  singular  island  in  the  river,  called 
the  '  Grand  Tower,'  and  the  shot  tower  at  Herculaneum. 

"  From  the  sources  of  the  river  to  the  mouth  of  the  Missouri,  the 
annual  flood  ordinarily  commences  in  March,  and  does  not  subside 
until  the  last  of  May,  and  its  medial  height  is  fifteen  feet.  At  the 
lowest  stages,  four  feet  of  water  may  be  found  from  the  rapids  of  Des 
Moines  to  the  mouth  of  the  Missouri.  Between  that  point  and  the 
mouth  of  the  Ohio,  there  are  six  feet  in  the  channel  of  the  shallow- 
est places  at  low  water;  and  the  annual  inundation  may  be  estima- 
ted at  twenty-five  feet.  Between  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio  and  the  St. 
Francis,  there  are  various  shoal  places,  where  pilots  are  often  perplex- 
ed to  find  a  sufficient  depth  of  water,  when  the  river  is  low.  Below 
that  point,  there  is  no  difficulty  for  vessels  of  any  draught,  except  to 
find  the  right  channel.  Below  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio,  the  medial 
flood  is  fifty  feet ;  the  highest,  sixty.  Above  Natchez,  the  flood  be- 
gins to  decline.  At  Baton  Rouge,  it  seldom  exceeds  thirty  feet ;  and 
at  New  Orleans,  twelve.  Some  have  supposed  this  gradual  diminu- 
tion of  the  flood  to  result  from  the  draining  of  the  numerous  efflux- 
es of  the  river,  that  convey  away  such  considerable  portions  of  its 
waters,  by  separate  channels  to  the  sea.  To  this  should  be  added, 
no  doubt,  the  check,  which  the  river  at  this  distance  begins  to  feel 
from  the  re-action  of  the  sea,  where  this  mighty  mass  of  descending 
waters  finds  its  level."  * 

The  banks  of  the  river,  from  Cairo  down,  are  Clothed,  in  many  in- 
stances, with  a  rich  verdure  of  trees,  down  to  the  jvater's  edge,  inter- 

*  Flint's  Geography. 


THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER.  71 

spersed  here  and  there  with  towns  and  fine  plantations.  About  five 
hundred  miles  below,  commences  the  great  cotton  growing  region, 
and,  below  the  mouth  of  Red  river,  the  sugar  plantations.  From 
thence  to  New  Orleans,  the  banks  of  the  river  are  lined  with  a  suc- 
cession of  fine  plantations,  with  fine  dwellings,  delightfully  surround- 
ed with  shrubbery.  From  Columbia,  Arkansas,  the  forest  of  cotton 
and  other  trees  presents  a  most  singular  appearance,  being,  in  many 
places,  covered  with  a  peculiar  kind  of  moss,  which  depends  from  the 
branches,  in  long,  thick  masses,  and  give  an  almost  funereal  aspect  to 
them.  It  is  the  moss  commonly  used,  when  manufactured,  for  mat- 
tresses, &LC. 

A  traveler,  in  some  well  written  sketches,  very  truthfully  remarks, 
that,  "No  person  can  pass  down  the  Mississippi,  and  view  the  im- 
mense bodies  of  uncultivated  lands,  lying  contiguous  to  its  banks, 
without  reflecting  on  the  great  changes  which  time  will  produce.  In 
a  century,  or  two  at  the  most,  the  banks  of  the  river  will  present 
continuous  lines  of  cultivated  plantations,  similar  to  those  on  the 
coast.  The  lands  are  as  rich  as  nature  can  make  them,  being  all  of 
alluvial  formation  ;  and  the  soil  of  such  a  depth,  that  there  is  no  dan- 
ger of  its  ever  being  exhausted.  When  we  read  of  the  myriads  of 
people,  who  formerly  existed  in  the  valley  of  the  Nile,  and  compare 
the  capabilities  of  the  Mississippi  valley  with  it,  we  can  comprehend 
the  great  destiny,  awaiting  only  the  development  of  time,  in  store  for 
this  already  far-famed  region." 

GALENA,  the  county-seat  of  Jo  Daviess  county,  III.,  and  the  prin- 
cipal town  in  the  lead  region,  is  situated  on  Fever  river,  about  nine 
miles  from  the  Mississippi,  and  about  four  hundred  and  thirty  above 
St.  Louis.  It  derives  its  great  importance  from  the  lead  business, 
which  is  here  extensively  carried  on.  Immense  quantities  of  lead 
are  found  in  the  north-western  part  of  Illinois  and  Wisconsin,  extend- 
ing from  the  Wisconsin  river  to  Rock  river,  on  both  sides  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi. The  French  and  Indians  had  been  accustomed,  for  a  num- 
ber of  years  previously,  to  obtain  small  quantities  of  the  ore,  but  the 
process  of  separating  the  metals  was  not  carried  on  regularly  until 
1822.  From  that  time,  up  to  the  end  of  1835,  seventy  millions,  four 
hundred  and  twenty  thousand,  three  hundred  and  fifty  seven  pound* 
of  lead  have  been  made  here.  Thirteen  million  pounds  have  been 
smelted  in  one  year.  Since  then,  the  business  has  been  rapidly  in- 
creasing, and  new  mines  opened.  The  supply  is  supposed  to  be  al- 
most inexhaustible.  Galena  is  pleasantly  located  on  Fever  river, 
which  is  navigable  to  it,  in  all  seasons,  for  steamboats  of  any  size. 
It  was  first  settled  in  1826,  and  was  then  an  outpost  in  the  wilder- 
ness. An  immense  amount  of  business  is  transacted  here,  as  it  is  a 
place  of  import  and  export  for  the  products  of  a  very  extensive  and 
fertile  country.  There  are  several  churches,  two  printing-offices,  sev- 
eral extensive  manufactories,  including  mills  (flouring  and  saw  mills), 
sheet  lead  manufactories,  &c.  In  1846,  $2,225,000  worth  of  lead 
was  exported  from  this  place.  The  population  is  about  five 
thousand. 

From  Galena  to  St.  Louis  there  are  a  number  of  places,  a  few 


72  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

only  of  which  we  can  give  particular  descriptions.     The  names  and 
distances  of  them  will,  however,  be  given, 

BELLEVIEW,  seven  miles  below,  in  Iowa. 

SAVANNAH,  twenty  miles  below,  in  Carroll  county,  Illinois. 

CHARLESTOWN,  one  mile  below,  in  Iowa. 

VAN  BUREN,  fifteen  miles  below,  in  Carroll  county,  111. 

ALBANY,  eight  miles  below,  in  Whiteside  county,  111.,  was  laid 
out  in  1837,  and  has  improved  rapidly,  since.  The  site  of  the  town 
and  surrounding  country  is  highly  beautiful. 

CAMANCHE,  Iowa,  two  miles  below. 

PARKHURST,  twenty  miles  below. 

MILAN,  fifteen  miles  below,  in  Rock  Island  county,  111. 

ROCK  ISLAND,  five  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is  a  large 
island  in  the  Mississippi,  three  miles  long,  and  about  one  and  a-half 
miles  wide,  with  a  limestone  rock  for  its  base.  On  it  stands  Fort 
Armstrong,  a  strong  and  very  neat  garrison  of  the  United  States. 
On  two  sides,  the  rock  is  twenty  feet  in  perpendicular  height  above 
the  river,  and  forms  the  foundation  of  the  fort.  The  southern  point 
of  the  island  is  elevated  about  forty  feet  above  the  ordinary  level  of 
the  river. 

ROCK  ISLAND  CITY  and  STEPHENSPORT  are  situated  at 
the  junction  of  Rock  river  with  the  Mississippi.  Rock  Island  City 
has  been  laid  out  on  an  extensive  plan,  and  embraces  in  it  Stephens- 
port,  the  county-seat  of  Rock  Island  county.  It  is  rapidly  increasing, 
and  promises  to  become  a  place  of  considerable  importance.  The  po- 
sition of  the  city  is  one  of  the  best  on  the  Upper  Mississippi,  and  the 
country  surrounding  it  affords  fine  agricultural  facilities ;  while  the 
timber,  limestone,  and  coal  in  its  vicinity  are  not  only  sufficient  for 
home  purposes,  but  considerable  quantities  of  wood  and  coal  are 
transported  to  other  points.  Rock  river,  which  enters  a  short  distance 
below,  may  be  easily  rendered  navigable,  and  affords  abundant  water 
power  for  machinery. 

The  population  of  Rock  Island  City  is  now  about  two  thousand. 

DAVENPORT,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  a  little  above,  is 
the  county-seat  of  Scott  county,  Iowa.  It  is  a  very  flourishing  place, 
situated  on  a  beautifully  elevated  plain.  A  large  amount  of  business 
is  transacted  here,  in  shipping  off  the  products  of  the  rich  and  beau- 
tiful country  in  the  interior,  and  supplying  the  inhabitants  with  the 
productions  of  other  regions.  Davenport  is  destined  to  become  one 
of  the  most  populous,  as  it  is  one  of  the  handsomest  places,  on  the 
Upper  Mississippi.  A  college,  under  the  supervision  of  the  Presbyte- 
rians, is  in  course  of  erection.     The  population  is  one  thousand. 

ROCKINGHAM,  Iowa,  five  miles  below. 

BUFFALO,  seven  miles  below,  in  Iowa. 


THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER.  73 

BLOOMINGTON,  twenty  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Mus- 
catine county,  Iowa.  It  is  one  of  the  largest  places  in  the  state,  in 
point  of  population,  as  well  as  business.  The  population  is  about 
one  thousand  eight  hundred. 

NEW  BOSTON,  twenty-seven  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of 
Mercer  county,  Illinois.  It  has  a  good  landing,  and  is  surrounded  by 
a  fertile  country. 

IOWA  RIVER,  a  considerable  tributary  of  the  Mississippi,  enters 
a  short  distance  below  New  Boston.     On  it  is  located 

IOWA  CITY,  the  capital  of  the  state.  It  is  a  rapidly  improving 
place,  surrounded  by  a  beautiful  and  fertile  section  of  country.  It 
contains  a  state  house,  a  college,  an  academy,  a  United  States'  land 
office,  and  several  churches.  Population,  about  one  thousand  five 
hundred. 

OQJJAWKA,  twenty  miles  below,  is  the  principal  depot  for  freights, 
between  the  Des  Moines  and  Rock  River  Rapids.  It  was  laid  out 
about  fourteen  years  ago,  when  the  site  on  which  it  stands  was  pur- 
chased for  two  hundred  dollars.  It  was  sold  some  two  years  after, 
to  an  enterprising  land  speculator,  for  $24,000,  who,  by  a  sale  of 
only  a  small  part  of  his  purchase,  realized  the  full  amount  of  the  pur- 
chase money. 

BURLINGTON,  fifteen  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Des 
Moines  county,  Iowa,  and  was  the  former  capital  of  the  state.  It 
was  removed  to  Iowa  City,  in  1839.  Burlington  is  finely  situated, 
and  enjoys  considerable  trade.     It  is  fast  improving. 

FORT  MADISON,  twenty-three  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat 
of  Lee  county,  Iowa.  It  is  also  thriving  rapidly,  and  now  contains  a 
population  of,  from  one  thousand  two  hundred  to  one  thousand  five 
hundred.     The  penitentiary  of  the  state  is  located  here. 

MONTROSE,  nine  miles  below,  in  Iowa. 

NAUVOO,  opposite,  in  Hancock  county,  111.,  is  the  site  of  the  cel- 
ebrated Mormon  city,  which  was  laid  out  about  1840,  by  Joseph 
Smith  and  his  followers.  It  is  situated  on  a  handsome  plain,  on  an 
elevated  bank,  extending  for  some  distance  from  the  river.  The  city 
was  laid  out  on  a  very  extensive  plan,  and  intended  to  be  the  great 
city,  to  which  all  should  look,  as  the  Jews  do  toward  Jerusalem. 
A  great  many  houses  were  erected,  some  of  them  on  a  very  magnif- 
icent scale,  and  the  city  was  fast  being  filled  with  the  adherents  of 
that  sect,  from  all  parts  of  the  country.  A  temple  was  also  in  course 
of  erection,  which,  for  vastness  of  dimensions  and  splendor  of  de- 
sign, was  intended  to  be  without  a  rival  in  the  Union.  But,  difficul- 
ties having  arisen  among  the  members  of  the  community,  and  between 
them  and  the  citizens  of  the  surrounding  country,  Joseph  Smith,  the 
Lieutenant  General  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  and  High  Priest,  and  Hi- 
ram, his  brother,  were  arrested,  and  thrown  into  prison,  in  Carthage. 


74  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER 

the  county-seat,  where  they  were,  on  the  27th  of  June,  1844,  murder 
ed,  by  an  armed  mob,  in  disguise,  who  overpowered  the  guard,  sta- 
tioned at  the  jail.  New  troubles  subsequently  arising,  the  Mormons 
were  expelled  from  the  state.  Many  of  them  returned  to  their  for- 
mer homes,  in  the  states,  reduced  in  circumstances,  and  enfeebled  by 
toil  and  sickness  ;  but  a  large  body  banded  together,  and  started  to- 
ward Oregon,  with  the  intention  of  there  raising  up  a  city,  which 
should  fill  the  place  of  that  one,  which  had  proved  so  disastrous  to 
them.  Nauvoo  has  since  declined  rapidly.  A  religious  denomination 
were  about  making  a  contract  for  the  purchase  of  the  Temple,  for  a 
college,  but  it  was  destroyed  in  October,  1848,  by  an  incendiary,  who 
fired  it  in  the  cupola,  and  it  is  now  a  heap  of  ruins. 

NASHVILLE,  four  miles  below,  in  Lee  county,  Iowa. 

KEOKUCK,  eight  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is  a  place  of 
much  importance  as  a  business  point,  population  two  thousand  one 
nundred  and  fourteen. 

WARSAW,  four  miles  below,  in  Hancock  county,  111.,  opposite  the 
mouth  of  the  Des  Moines  river,  is  destined  to  attain  a  high  rank 
among  the  towns  of  the  West.  The  situation  is  a  very  eligible  one, 
and  the  place  is  rapidly  improving. 

THE  DESMOINES  RIVER,  which  here  enters  on  the  opposite 
side,  forms,  for  a  short  distance,  the  boundary  line  between  Iowa  and 
Missouri. 

TULLY,  eighteen  miles  below,  in  Missouri. 
LA  GRANGE,  nine  miles  below. 

QJJINCY,  twelve  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Adams  county, 
III.  It  is  situated  on  a  beautiful  elevation,  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  feet  above  the  limestone-bound  shore  of  the  Mississippi,  and 
commands  a  fine  view  of*  the  river,  for  five  or  six  miles  in  each  direc- 
tion. It  contains  an  enterprising  and  intelligent  population,  and  is 
destined  to  become  an  extensive  and  flourishing  place.  There  are  a 
large  number  of  stores,  several  fine  churches,  a  United  States'  land 
office,  and  several  mills  and  manufactories.  The  public  square  is 
large,  and  on  the  east  side  of  it  there  is  a  fine  court  house,  erected  at 
a  cost  of  twenty  thousand  dollars.  The  country  in  its  vicinity,  is  a 
beautifully  rolling  and  rich  prairie,  and  one  of  the  finest  agricultural 
regions  in  the  state.  Large  quantities  of  produce  are  annually  ship- 
ped from  here,  by  steamboats  and  other  craft,  which  can  navigate  the 
river,  from  this  place  down,  at  any  season  of  the  year.  The  present 
population  of  Q,uincy,  is  five  thousand  eight  hundred  and  sixty-five. 

MARION  CITY,  seven  miles  below,  in  Marion  county,  Missouri, 
is  the  shipping  port  for  Palmyra,  the  county-seat,  in  the  interior. 
The  soil  of  this  county  is  very  rich,  and  abounds  in  fine  timber,  bitu- 
minous coal,  salt  springs,  and  lead. 

HANNIBAL,  twelve  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is  a  place 
of  large  and  growing  trade,  population  two  thousand  three  hundred 
and  twenty-nine. 


THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER.  75 

SAVERTON,  eight  miles  below,  in  Ralls  county,  Missouri.  New- 
London  is  the  county-seat. 

LOUISIANA,  twenty  miles  below,  in  Pike  count\r,  Missouri.  Bowl- 
ing Green  is  the  county-seat. 

CLARKSV1LLE,  twelve  miles  below,  in  the  same  county. 

HAMBURGH,  thirteen  miles  below,  in  Calhoun,  county,  Illinois. 
Guilford  is  the  county-seat. 

ILLINOIS  RIVER,  forty-two  miles  below,  is  the  most  considera- 
ble stream  in  Illinois,  after  the  Mississippi.  It  is  navigable  for  steam- 
boats to  Utica,  two  hundred  and  ten  miles  from  its  mouth.  The 
country  along  its  banks  is  very  rich  and  productive,  and  the  com- 
merce on  it  is  very  extensive,  a  number  of  steamboats  being  constant- 
ly engaged  in  its  trade.  On  the  banks  of  this  river,  the  French  em- 
igrants from  Canada  settled  themselves,  and  here  was  the  scenery 
on  which  they  founded  their  extravagant  panegyrics  upon  the  west- 
ern country. 

GRAFTON,  two  miles  below,  in  Greene  county,  Illinois,  is  a  thriv- 
ing place,  situated  on  an  elevated  strip  of  land,  under  the  bluffs,  and 
has  a  good  steamboat  landing.  It  contains  a  population  of  about  one 
thousand. 

ALTON,  eighteen  miles  below,  in  Madison  county,  Illinois,  was 
laid  out  in  18 IS.  Up  to  the  year  1832,  it  contained  only  a  few  houses 
and  a  steam  mill.  In  that  year,  the  Penitentiary  of  the  state  was 
erected  here.  After  that,  it  commenced  improving  rapidly,  and  many 
very  fine  building!  were  erected.  It  is  finely  laid  out  in  wide,  beauti- 
ful streets,  and  contains  several  fine  churches,  a  large  number  of  stores, 
some  of  which  do  a  very  extensive  business.  This  city  is  surround- 
ed, for  several  miles  in  extent,  with  one  of  the  finest  bodies  of  tim- 
ber in  the  stale,  from  which  vast  quantities  of  lumber  may  be  pro- 
duced. Bituminous  coal  exists  in  great  abundance,  at  only  a  short 
distance  from  the  town.  Inexhaustible  beds  of  limestone,  for  build- 
ing purposes,  and  easily  quarried,  are  within  its  precincts.  A  species 
of  freestone,  easily  dressed,  and  used  for  monuments  and  architect- 
ural purposes,  and  that  peculiar  species  of  lime,  used  for  water  ce- 
ment, are  found  in  great  abundance,  in  the  vicinity.  The  corporate 
bounds  extend  two  miles  along  the  river,  and  half-a-mile  back.  The 
city  plat  is  laid  out,  by  the  proprietors,  upon  a  liberal  scale.  There 
are  five  squares  reserved  for  public  purposes,  and  a  large  reservation 
is  made  on  the  river  for  a  public  landing  and  promenade.  For  several 
years  its  progress  was  truly  astonishing.  No  place  in  the  west  held  out 
such  inducements  for  mechanics  and  all  classes.  In  1837,  a  riot  broke 
out  here,  occasioned  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Lovejoy  attempting  to  publish 
an  abolition  newspaper.  The  store  in  which  the  press  was  placed, 
was  attacked  at  night,  by  a  large  body  of  armed  men.  It  was  de- 
fended by  the  parlies  within  the  store.  The  conflict  lasted  from  an 
hour  and  a  half  to  two  hours,  both  parties  firing  on  each  other,  the 
bells  of  the  town  ringing,  and  the  streets  crowded.     In  the  conflict, 


76  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

Mr.  Lovejoy  fell,  pierced  with  five  balls,  and  died  in  a  few  mo- 
ments. 

UPPER  ALTON  is  situated  two  miles  and  a  half  in  the  interior, 
and  is  the  seat  of  Shurtliff  college. 

MISSOURI  RIVER,  five  miles  below.  Mr.  Flint,  in  his  history 
of  the  west,  gives  the  following  description  of  this  river,  which  is, 
probably,  the  best  that  has  ever  been  written : 

"  This  is  by  far  the  greatest  tributary  of  the  Mississippi,  bringing 
down  more  water  than  the  Upper  Mississippi  itself.  In  fact,  it  is  a 
longer  river  than  the  Mississippi,  from  its  furthest  source  to  the  Mex- 
ican Gulf.  There  are  many  circumstances  which  render  it  one  of 
the  most  interesting  of  rivers ;  and  it  is  clearly  the  longest  tributary 
stream  on  the  globe.  Many  have  thought,  that,  from  its  length,  the 
amount  of  its  waters,  and  the  circumstance  of  its  communicating  its 
own  character,  in  every  respect,  to  the  Mississippi  below  the  junction, 
that  it  ought  to  have  been  considered  the  main  river,  and  to  have  con- 
tinued to  bear  its  own  name  to  the  sea.  In  opposition  to  this  claim, 
we  remark,  that  the  valley  of  the  Missouri  seems,  in  the  grand  scale 
of  conformation,  to  be  secondary  to  that  of  the  Mississippi.  The 
Missouri  has  not  the  general  direction  of  that  river,  which  it  joins 
nearly  at  right  angles.  The  valley  of  the  Mississippi  is  wider  than 
that  of  the  Missouri,  as  is  also  the  river  broader  than  the  other.  The 
course  of  the  river,  and  the  direction  of  the  valley,  are  the  same, 
above  and  below  the  junction  of  the  Missouri.  From  these,  and  many 
other  considerations,  the  '  father  of  waters '  seems  fairly  entitled  to  the 
name  which  he  has  so  long  borne. 

"Its  prodigious  length  of  course,  its  uncommon  turbidness,  its  im- 
petuous and  wild  character,  and  the  singular  country  through  which 
it  runs,  impart  to  this  river  a  natural  grandeur,  belonging  to  the  sub- 
lime. We  have  never  crossed  it  without  experiencing  a  feeling  of 
that  sort;  nor  without  a  stretch,  almost  laborious  in  the  attempt  to 
trace  it  in  thought,  along  its  immense  distances,  and  through  its  dis- 
tant region  and  countries,  to  the  lonely  and  stupendous  mountains 
from  which  it  springs. 

"  It  rises  in  the  Rocky  Mountains,  nearly  in  the  same  parallel  with 
the  Mississippi.  The  most  authentic  information  we  have  yet  had 
of  the  sources  of  this  mighty  river,  is  from  its  first  intrepid  Ameri- 
can discoverers,  Lewis  and  Clark.  What  may  properly  be  called  the 
Missouri,  seems  to  be  formed  by  three  considerable  branches,  which 
unite  not  far  from  the  basis  of  the  principal  ranges  of  the  mountains. 
To  the  northern,  they  gave  the  name  of  Jefferson  ;  to  the  middle, 
Gallatin ;  to  the  southern,  Madison.  Each  of  these  branches  fork 
again  into  a  number  of  small  mountain  streams.  It  is  but  a  short 
distance  from  some  of  these  to  the  head-waters  of  the  Columbia,  on 
the  other  side  of  the  mountains.  A  person  may  drink  from  the  spring 
sources  of  each,  without  traveling  more  than  a  mile.  After  this  junc- 
tion, the  river  continues  a  considerable  distance  to  be  still  a  foaming 
mountain  torrent.  It  then  spreads  into  a  broad  and  comparatively 
gentle  stream,  full  of  islands.  Precipitous  peaks  of  blackish  rock 
frown  above  the  river  in  perpendicular  elevations  of  one  thousand 


THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER.  77 

feet.  The  mountains,  whose  bases  it  sweeps,  are  covered  with  tere- 
binthines,  such  as  pines,  cedars,  and  firs  ;  and  mountain  sheep  are 
seen  bounding  on  their  summits,  where  they  are  apparently  inacces- 
sible. In  this  distance,  the  mountains  have  an  aspect  of  inexpressi- 
ble loneliness  and  grandeur. 

"  The  river  then  becomes  almost  a  continued  cataract,  for  a  distance 
of  about  seventeen  miles.  In  this  distance,  its  perpendicular  descent 
is  three  hundred  and  sixty-two  feet.  The  first  fall  is  ninety-eight 
feet ;  the  second,  nineteen  ;  the  third,  forty-seven  ;  the  fourth,  twenty- 
six.  It  continues  rapid  for  a  long  distance  beyond.  Not  far  below 
these  falls,  enters  Maria's  river  from  the  north.  This  is  a  very  con- 
siderable stream.  Still  further  down,  on  the  opposite  side,  enter  Dear- 
born and  Fancy,  each  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards  wide  ;  Ma- 
noles,  one  hundred  ;  Big  Horn,  one  hundred  ;  Muscle-shell,  one  hun- 
dred ;  Big  Dry,  four  hundred  ;  Dry,  one  hundred  ;  Porcupine,  one 
hundred  and  twelve — all  these  enter  from  the  south  side.  Below 
these,  enter  the  Roche  Jaime,  or  Yellow  Stone,  probably  the  largest 
tributary  of  the  Missouri.  It  rises  in  the  same  range  of  mountains 
with  the  main  river,  and  has  many  points  of  resemblance  to  it.  It 
enters  from  the  south,  by  a  mouth  eight  hundred  and  fifty  yards  wide. 
It  is  a  broad,  deep,  and  sweeping  river;  and  at  its  junction,  appears 
the  largest  of  the  two.  Its  course  is  commonly  calculated  at  one 
thousand  six  hundred  miles.  But  the  sizes  and  lengths  of  all  these 
tributaries  are  probably  overrated.  Its  shores,  for  a  long  distance 
above  its  entrance,  are  heavily  timbered,  and  its  bottoms  wide,  and  of 
the  finest  soil.  Its  entrance  is  deemed  to  be  one  thousand  eight  hun- 
dred and  eighty  miles  above  the  mouth  of  the  Missouri;  and  it  was 
selected  by  government  as  an  eligible  situation  for  a  military  post, 
and  an  extensive  settlement.  White  bears,  elk,  and  mountain  sheep, 
are  the  principal  animals  seen  along  this  part  of  the  river. 

"At  the  point  of  junction  with  the  Yellow  Stone,  the  Missouri  has 
wide  and  fine  bottoms.  Unfortunately,  its  banks  are,  for  the  most 
part,  destitute  of  timber ;  and  this,  for  a  long  series  of  years,  will  pre- 
vent its  capacity  for  habitancy.  White-earth  river,  from  the  north, 
is  a  small  stream.  Goose  river,  three  hundred  yards  wide,  comes  in 
from  the  south  side.  Little  Missouri  is  shallow  and  rapid,  and  is 
about  one  hundred  and  thirty  yards  wide.  Knife  river  comes  in  from 
the  south,  just  above  the  Mandan  villages.  Cannon-ball  river  enters 
from  the  south  side,  and  is  one  hundred  and  forty  yards  wide.  Win- 
nipenhu,  south  side.  Serwarsena,  south  side.  Chienne  is  represent- 
ed to  be  boatable  nearly  800  miles,  and  enters  from  the  south  side,  by 
a  mouth  four  hundred  yards  wide.  Tyber's  river.  White  river, 
boatable  six  hundred  miles,  south  side,  is  a  very  beautiful  stream,  and 
has  a  mouth  three  hundred  yards  wide.  Honcas,  south  side.  Q.ui- 
Courre,  a  fine  stream,  with  a  short  course,  south  side.  Riviere  a  Ja- 
que,  a  noted  resort  for  traders  and  trappers.  White  Stone,  Big  Sioux, 
Floyd's  river.  La  Platte  enters  from  the  south,  and  has  a  longer 
course  than  any  other  river  of  the  Missouri.  It  rises  in  the  same 
ranges  of  mountains  with  the  parent  stream,  and,  measured  by  its 
meanders,  is  supposed  to  have  a  course  of  2000  miles  before  it  joins 
that  river.     It  is  nearly  a  mile  in  width  at  its  entrance  ;  but  is,  as  its 


78  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

name  imports,  very  shallow,  and  is  not  boatable  except  at  its  highest 
Hoods.  Nodowa,  north  side.  Little  Platte,  north  side.  Kansas  is  a 
very  large  tributary  from  the  south,  and  has  a  course  of  about  one 
thousand  two  hundred  miles,  and  is  boatable  for  most  of  the  distance. 
Blue  Water,  and  two  or  three  small  streams  below,  come  in  on  the 
south  side.  Grand  river  is  a  large,  long,  and  deep  stream,  boatable 
for  a  great  distance,  and  enters  on  the  north  side.  The  two  Chara- 
tons  come  in  on  the  same  side.  The  La  Mine  enters  on  the  south 
side.  Bonne  Femme  and  Manitou,  enter  on  the  north  side,  and  Salt 
river  on  the  south. 

"  The  Osage,  which  enters  on  the  south  side,  is  a  large  and  very  im- 
portant stream  of  the  Missouri,  boatable  six  hundred  miles,  and  inter- 
locking with  the  waters  of  the  Arkansas.  Three  or  four  inconsider- 
able streams  enter  on  the  opposite  side,  as  Miry,  Otter,  and  Cedar 
rivers.  On  the  south  side  enters  the  Gasconade,  boatable  for  sixty- 
six  miles,  and  is  important  from  having  on  its  banks  extensive  pine 
forests,  from  which  the  great  supply  of  plank  and  timber  of  that  kind 
is  brought  to  St.  Charles  and  St.  Louis.  On  the  south  side,  below 
the  Gasconade,  are  a  number  of  inconsiderable  rivers  ;  as  Buffalo, 
St.  John's,  Wood  river,  Bonhomme,  &c :  and  on  the  other  side,  the 
Charette,  Femme  Osage,  and  one  or  two  small  branches,  before  it  pre- 
cipitates itself  into  the  Mississippi. 

"The  bottoms  of  this  river  have  a  character  very  distinguishable 
from  those  of  the  upper  Mississippi.  They  are  higher,  not  so  wet, 
more  sandy,  with  trees  which  are  not  so  large,  but  taller  and  straight- 
er.  Its  alluvions  are  something  narrower;  that  is  to  say,  having  for 
the  first  five  hundred  miles  a  medial  width  of  something  more  than 
four  miles.  Its  bluffs,  like  those  of  the  other  river,  are  generally  lime- 
stone, but  not  so  perpendicular,  and  have  more  tendency  to  run  into 
the  mamelle  form.  The  bottoms  abound  with  deer,  turkeys,  and 
small  game.  The  river  seldom  overflows  any  part  of  its  banks  in 
this  distance.  It  is  little  inclined  to  be  swampy.  There  are  much 
fewer  lakes,  bayous,  and  small  ponds,  than  along  the  Mississippi. 
Prairies  are  scarcely  seen  on  the  banks  of  the  river,  within  the  dis- 
tance of  the  first  four  hundred  miles  of  its  course.  It  is  heavily  tim- 
bered ;  and  yet,  from  the  softness  of  the  wood,  easily  cleared.  The 
water,  though  uncommonly  turbid  with  a  whitish  earth,  which  it  holds 
in  suspension,  soon  and  easily  settles,  and  is  then  remarkably  pure, 
pleasant  and  healthy  water.  The  river  is  so  rapid  and  sweeping  in 
its  course,  and  its  bed  is  composed  of  such  masses  of  sand,  that  it 
is  continually  shifting  its  sand  bars.  A  chart  of  the  river  as  it  runs 
this  year,  gives  little  ground  for  calculation  in  navigating  it  the  next. 
It  has  numerous  islands,  and  generally  near  them  is  the  most  difficult 
to  be  stemmed.  Still  more  than  the  Mississippi  below  its  mouth,  it 
tears  up  in  one  place  and  deposits  in  another,  and  makes  more  fre- 
quent and  powerful  changes  in  its  channel  than  any  other  western 
river. 

"Its  bottoms  are  considerably  settled  for  a  distance  of  four  hundred 
miles  above  its  mouth.  That  of  Charaton  is  the  highest  compact 
settlement.  But  the  largest  and  most  populous  settlement  in  the 
State,  is  that  called  Boone's  Lick.     Indeed,  there  are  American  set- 


THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER.  79 

tiers  here  and  there,  on  the  bottoms,  above  the  Platte,  and  far  beyond 
the  limits  of  the  state  of  Missouri.  Above  the  Platte,  the  open  and 
prairie  character  of  the  country  begins  to  develop.  The  prairies 
come  quite  into  the  banks  of  the  river,  and  stretch  from  it  indefinitely, 
in  naked  grass  plains,  where  the  traveler  may  wander  for  days  with- 
out seeing  either  wood  or  water.  The  'Council  Bluffs'  afe  an  im- 
portant military  station,  about  six  hundred  miles  up  the  Missouri. 
Beyond  this  point,  commences  a  country  of  great  interest  and  gran- 
deur in  many  respects,  and  denominated,  by  way  of  eminence,  the  Up- 
per Missouri.  The  country  is  composed  of  vast  and  almost  bound- 
less grass  plains,  through  which  stretch  the  Platte,  the  Yellow  Stone, 
and  the  other  rivers  of  this  ocean  of  grass.  The  savages  of  this  region 
have  a  peculiar  physiognomy  and  mode  of  life.  It  is  a  country  where 
commence  new  tribes  of  plants.  It  is  the  home  of  builalos,  elk, 
white  bears,  antelopes,  and  mountain  sheep.  Sometimes  the  river 
washes  the  bases  of  the  dark  hills  of  a  friable  and  crumbling  soil. 
Here  are  found,  as  Lewis  and  Clarke  and  other  respectable  travelers 
relate,  large  and  singular  petrifactions,  both  animal  and  vegetable. 
On  the  top  of  one  of  these  hills  they  found  the  petrified  skeleton  of 
a  huge  fish,  forty-five  feet  in  length.  The  herds  of  the  gregarious 
animals,  particularly  the  burfalos,  are  innumerable.  Such  is  the 
general  character  of  the  country,  until  we  come  in  contact  with  the 
spurs  of  the  Rocky  Mountains. 

"As  far  as  the  limits  of  the  State,  this  river  is  capable  of  support- 
ing a  dense  population,  for  a  considerable  distance  from  its  banks. 
Above  those  limits  it  is  generally  too  destitute  of  wood  to  become 
habitable  by  any  other  people  than  hunters  and  shepherds.  All  the 
great  tributaries  of  this  river  are  copies,  more  or  less  exact,  of  the  pa- 
rent stream.  One  general  remark  applies  to  the  whole  country.  The 
rivers  have  a  narrow  margin  of  fertility.  The  country,  as  it  recedes 
from  the  river,  becomes  more  and  more  sterile,  sandy,  and  destitute 
of  water,  until  it  approximates  in  character  toward  the  sandy  des- 
erts of  Arabia. 

:'  The  Osage,  as  we  have  mentioned,  is  one  of  the  principal  tribu- 
taries of  the  Missouri  in  this  state.  It  comes  in  on  the  south  side  of 
the  Missouri,  one  hundred  and  thirty  miles  above  its  junction  with 
the  Mississippi.  At  its  mouth,  it  is  nearly  four  hundred  yards  wide. 
Its  general  course  is  from  south  to  north ;  and  the  best  cotton  coun- 
try in  the  State  of  Missouri  is  on  the  head  waters  of  this  river.  Its 
principal  branches  are.  Mary's,  Big  Bone,  Yungar,  Potato,  and  Grand 
Fork  rivers.  Yungar  is  nearly  as  large  as  the  parent  stream,  and  is 
navigable  for  small  craft,  except  at  its  grand  cascade,  for  nearly  an 
hundred  miles.  The  cascade  is  a  great  cataract  of  ninety  feet  fall. 
When  the  river  is  full,  the  roar  is  heard  far  through  the  desert.  It  is 
a  fine  country  through  which  the  river  runs." 

The  entire  length  of  the  Missouri,  from  its  source  until  it  enters 
the  Mississippi,  is  computed  to  be  about  two  thousand  two  hundred 
and  eighty-five  miles.  It  is  navigable  to  the  foot  of  the  great 
falls,  nearly  three  thousand  eight  hundred  miles  from  the  sea, 
and  steam-boats  have  ascended  it  two  thousand  two  hundred 
miles. 


80  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

JEFFERSON  CITY,  the  capital  of  Missouri,  is  situated  on  this 
river,  one  hundred  and  thirty-five  miles  from  its  mouth. 

ST.  LOUIS,  seventeen  miles  below,  was  selected  by  Mr.  Laclede 
(the  manager  for  a  company  of  merchants,  who  had  obtained  the  mo- 
nopoly of  the  Indian  fur  trade,  on  the  Mississippi  and  Missouri  riv- 
ers) as  a  depot  for  their  merchandise.  Mr.  Laclede,  after  examining 
numerous  points  on  the  Mississippi,  foresaw  and  predicted  the  future 
importance  of  the  town,  to  which  he  gave  the  name  of  St.  Louis,  and 
accordingly,  in  December,  1763,  he  had  a  portion  of  the  ground,  on 
which  it  stands,  cleared,  and  returned  to  Fort  Chartres,  to  make  pre- 
parations for  the  establishment  of  his  new  colony.  He  was  accom- 
panied in  his  visit  by  two  young  Creoles  of  New  Orleans,  Augustus 
and  Pierre  Chouteau,  whom  he,  in  the  February  following,  dispatch- 
ed with  men  and  materials  to  complete  the  settlement.  During  the 
summer  of  1764,  many  of  the  French  from  the  vicinity  of  Fort  Char- 
ties,  removed  to  St.  Louis.  This  emigration  was  soon  checked  by 
the  cession  of  that  territory  to  the  King  of  Spain.  It  was  not,  how- 
ever, until  1770  that  Spain  obtained  possession  of  St.  Louis.  In 
1771,  it  contained  one  hundred  and  twenty  houses,  mostly  of  stone, 
large  and  commodious,  and  the  population  about  eight  hundred,  ex- 
clusive of  one  hundred  and  fifty  negroes ;  the  whites  being  mostly 
French.  Numerous  mounds,  the  work  of  an  unknown  race  of  peo- 
ple, were  to  be  seen  on  the  site  of  the  town,  and  in  its  vicinity. 

In  1780,  the  garrison  consisting  of  only  fifty  or  sixty  men,  was  at- 
tacked by  a  large  body  of  Indians,  numbering  from  nine  to  fifteen 
hundred.  "  The  women  and  children  who  could  not  take  part  in  the 
defense,  took  shelter  in  the  house  of  Auguste  Chouteau,  whilst  all 
those,  both  men  and  women,  who  were  within  the  palisades,  commenc- 
ed so  vigorous  a  resistance,  that  the  enemy  was  forced  to  retreat.  But 
these,  with  characteristic  ferocity,  threw  themselves  upon  those  of  the 
inhabitants,  who,  engaged  in  the  cultivation  of  their  fields,  had  not 
time  to  reach  the  palisades,  and  it  is  said  that  sixty  were  killed  and 
thirteen  were  made  prisoners.  The  year  this  attack  took  place  is  call- 
ed by  the  French,  "  V 'Annee  du  Grand  Coup — the  year  of  the  great 
blow." 

After  this,  the  inhabitants  finding  their  garrison  insufficient  to  protect 
them,  sent  Mr.  A.  Chouteau  to  New  Orleans  for  assistance.  Cruzat 
was  made  commander  of  St.  Louis,  and  a  wooden  fort  erected  on  the 
most  elevated  spot  within  the  city,  upon  which  several  heavy  pieces 
of  ordnance  were  mounted,  and  still  later,  four  stone  turrets  were  ad- 
ded, from  which  cross  fires  could  be  kept  up.  No  traces  of  this  for- 
tification are  now  to  be  seen.  "  The  present  old  market-place  of  St. 
Louis  is  the  spot  where  the  first  tents  and  log  cabins  were  pitched,  of 
this  now  important  city  of  the  west.  In  1810,  the  population  was 
one  thousand  four  hundred  ;  in  1830,  six  thousand  six  hundred  and 
ninety-four;  in  1840,  sixteen  thousand;  and  in  1848,  about  forty 
thousand.     Before  1814,  but  few  American  houses  were  built." 

"Since  the  Americans  began  to  take  the  lead  in  St.  Louis,  and  in- 
troduced our  laws  and  enterprise,  a  new  impulse  has  been  given  to  its 
improvement,  commerce,  and  prosperity.     The  situation  of  the  city 


THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVETv.  81 

is  very  beautiful.     It  stands  on  a  kind  of  second  bottom,  that  rises 
gently  from  the  river  to  a  considerable  eminence.     Having  surmount- 
ed this  bank, ail  extensive  plain  opens  to  view.     In  the  immediate  vi- 
cinity of  the  city,  this  plain  is  covered  with  bushes  and  shrub  oaks. 
Beyond,  is  an  extensive  belt  of  grassy  plain  or  naked  prairie.     The 
timber  for  several  miles  has  been  cut  away  for  fuel.     The  eye  repo- 
ses, in  the  spring  and  summer  months,  with  pleasure  upon  this  sweep 
of  verdure,  bounded  on  the  verge  of  the  horizon  with  forests,  and  al- 
so upon  the  level  bottom  and  noble  forests  on  the  opposite  shore  o? 
the  river.     The  city  has  extended  itself  along  the  hill;  and  some  o: 
the  best  houses  are  built  on  that  pleasant  elevation.     The  number 
of  the  Americans  now  predominates  over  that  of  the  French  :  hut 
the  population  is  made  up  of  emigrants  from  all  parts  of  the  world. 
There  is  no  town  in  the  western  country  more  favorably  situated,  a? 
the  seat  of  an  immense  trade.     It  is  nearly  in  the  center  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi valley,  commanding  the  trade  of  the  Missouri,  the  upper  Mis- 
sissippi, and  the  Illinois,  with  the  vast  and  almost  boundless  country 
watered  by  these  gigantic  streams.     The  fur  trade  of  this  immense 
country  already  centers  here.     It  is  the  depot  of  the  numberless  lead 
mines  in  this  region  of  country,  and  all  the  produce  and  merchandize 
of  the  country  above  it.     It  has  this  obvious  advantage  over  any  town 
on  the  Ohio,  that  steam-boats  can  run  between  here  and  New  Orleans 
at  the  lowest  stage  of  water.     A  great  number  of  keel  boats,  and  riv- 
er craft  of  all  descriptions,  bound  to  all  points  of  the  boatable  waters 
of  the  Mississippi,  are  seen  at  all  seasons  of  the  year,  lying  in  the 
harbor.     Miners,  trappers,  hunters,  adventurers,  emigrants,  and  peo- 
ple of  all  character  and  languages,  meet  here,  and  disperse  in  pursuit 
of  their  various  objects,  in  every  direction,  some  even  beyond  the  re- 
motest points  of  civilization." 

It  now  contains  thirty-five  churches,  five  public  schools,  two  med- 
ical colleges,  one  literary  do.,  o.ie  theological  do.,  one  bank,  sic.  The 
exports  are  estimated  to  amount  to  fifty  million  of  dollars  per  annum. 

The  number  of  steam-boats  engaged  in  the  trade  of  St.  Lpuis,  is 
two  hundred  and  sixty,  which  made  during  the  year  1817,  three 
thousand  two  hundred  and  sixty-six  trips. 

Such  is  a  brief  account  of  St.  Louis  as  it  ftas  been,  and  is  now. 
What  it  will  be,  when  the  ever-active  and  untiring  energy  of  our  peo- 
ple shall  have  developed  the  rich  resources  of  that  almost  boundless 
region  of  fertile  country,  which  surrounds  it,  cannot  be  much  of  a 
matter  of  speculation.  This  city  must  be  one  of  the  largest  and 
wealthiest  inland  cities  on  this  continent. 

CAHOKIA,  three  and  one-half  miles  below,  in  St.  Clair  county, 
111.,  is  one  of  the  oldest  settlements  in  the  state.  It  was  occupied  by 
the  Caoquias,  a  tribe  of  the  Illinois  Indians,  long  before  the  discov- 
ery of  the  Mississippi.  The  French  settled  on  it  shortly  after  La 
Salle  descended  the  Mississippi,  probably  about  the  year  1683.  In 
L766,  it  comained  forty  families,  and  now  contains  about  fifty.  The 
majority  of  the  houses  are  built  of  pickets,  one  story  high,  having 
piazzas  on  each  side,  and,  being  white-washed,  present  a  pleasant  ap- 
pearance. The  inhabitants  are  principally  French,  liy  aa  act  of 
'3 


82  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

Congress,  passed  in  17SS,  a  grant  of  four  hundred  acres  of  land,  ad- 
joining the  village,  was  made  to  each  family.  The  situation  is  some- 
what elevated,  but  damp,  and  unhealthy,  and  the  Americans  seldom 
pass  a  season  in  it  without  suffering  from  the  miasma  of  the  sur- 
rounding ponds.     Considerable  quantities  of  coal  are  found  near  it. 

CARONDALET,  formerly  called  VIDE  POCHE  (empty  pocket), 
four  miles  below,  is  a  small  village,  principally  occupied  by  French, 
who  supply  vegetables  for  the  St.  Louis  market.  It  was  settled  in 
1767. 

JEFFERSON  BARRACKS,  three  miles  below,  in  Missouri. 

HARRISON,  twenty-one  miles  below,  is  a  small  village,  in  Mon- 
roe county,  111. 

HERCULANEUM,  one  mile  below,  in  Jefferson  county,  Missouri, 
is  a  flourishing  town,  and  fast  rising  in  importance.  There  are  sev- 
eral large  shot  towers  and  factories  in  its  vicinity.  It  is  one  of  the 
principal  ports  of  the  lead  district. 

FORT  CHARTRES,  nineteen  miles  below,  in  Randolph  county, 
HI.,  "  was  originally  built  by  the  French,  in  1720,  to  defend  them- 
selves against  the  Spaniards,  who  were  then  in  possession  of  the 
country  on  the  Mississippi.  It  was  rebuilt  in  1756."  By  the  treaty 
of  Fontainbleau,  the  3d  of  November,  1762,  between  Great  Britain, 
France,  Spain,  and  Portugal,  the  regions  east  of  the  Mississippi,  inclu- 
ding all  the  various  towns  on  the  north-west,  were  given  up  to  Great 
Britain,  and  in  1765,  Capt.  Sterling,  in  the  name  of  the  majesty  of  Eng- 
land, took  possession  of  Fort  Chartres,  and  promulgated  a  proclamation, 
promising  freedom  of  religious  worship  to  the  western  Catholics,  a 
tight  to  leave  the  country,  if  they  wished,  or  remain,  with  the  privi- 
leges of  Englishmen.  "  The  circumstances,  character,  form,  and  his- 
tory of  this  fort,  are  interesting,  as  they  are  intimately  connected  with 
the  history  of  the  country.  It  was  once  a  formidable  piece  of  ma- 
sonry, the  materials  of  which  were  brought  three  or  four  miles  from 
the  bluffs.  It  was,  originally,  an  irregular  quadrangle,  the  exterior 
aides  of  which  were  four  hundred  and  ninety  feet  in  circumference. 
Within  the  walls  were  the  commandant's  and  commissary's  houses, 
a  magazine  for  stores,  barracks,  powder  magazines,  bake  house,  guard 
liouse,  and  prison.  It  is  now  a  heap  of  ruins.  A  slough  from  the 
Mississippi  undermined  the  wall  on  one  side,  in  1772.  Over  the 
whole  fort  is  a  considerable  growth  of  trees,  and  most  of  its  walls 
and  buildings  have  fallen  down,  and  lie  in  one  promiscuous  ruin." 

ST.  GENEVIEVE,  eleven  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Gen- 
evieve county,  Missouri.  It  is  handsomely  situated  on  a  healthy  spot, 
and  is  a  place  of  considerable  business,  particularly  in  the  article  of 
lead,  considerable  quantities  of  which,  as  well  as  iron  and  copper,  ex- 
ist in  the  neighborhood.  It  contains  a  population  of  about  two  thou- 
sand. It  was  settled  by  the  French,  at  a  very  early  day,  and,  in  1771, 
contained  a  population  of  four  hundred  and  sixty,  besides  blacks. 


84  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

KASKASKIA  RIVER,  fourteen  miles  below,  is  the  southern  ter- 
mination of  the  Great  American  Bottom,  which  extends  northwardly 
on  the  river,  for  eighty  miles.  In  this  bottom,  the  first  French  set- 
tlements were  made.  Seven  miles  from  the  mouth  of  the  Kaskaskia 
river,  is  the  town  of  Kaskaskia,  the  county-seat  of  Randolph  county, 
Illinois.  Kaskaskia  was  founded  shortly  after  the  visit  of  La  Salle 
to  the  Mississippi,  in  16S3,  by  Father  Gravier,  a  Catholic  missionary 
among  the  Illinois,  and  was  the  capital  of  the  Illinois  country,  so  long 
as  the.  French  continued  in  possession  of  it.  In  1763,  it  was  ceded 
by  France  to  Great  Britain.  In  1778,  the  fort  on  the  east  side  of  the 
river  was  taken  by  Col.  George  Rogers  Clark.  After  this,  and  until 
within  a  few  years,  the  town  gradually  declined.  It  is  now  in  a  flour- 
ishing condition.  The  houses  are  scattered  over  an  extensive  plain, 
and  the  greater  part  of  them  built  of  wood,  in  French  style. 

CHESTER,  one  miles  below  the  mouth  of  the  Kaskaskia  river,  in 
Randolph  county,  Illinois,  is  situated  on  an  elevated  strip  of  bottom 
land,  at  the  foot  of  the  bluffs.  It  is  the  depot  for  the  interior  country. 
It  is  a  place  of  considerable  importance,  and  contains  a  population  of 
about  eight  hundred. 

DEVIL'S  BAKE  OVEN,  twenty-nine  miles  below,  and  GRAND 
TOWER,  one-half  mile  below  it. 

These  natural  curiosities  are  thus  described  by  Judge  Hall,  in  his 
valuable  work  on  "  the  West :  "  "  Approaching  from  above,  we  first 
discover  the  ridge,  throwing  out  a  bold  promontory  into  the  stream, 
on  the  Illinois  shore,  on  tho  extreme  point  of  which,  is  a  large,  round- 
ed mass  of  rocks,  fifty  or  sixty  feet  in  height,  shaped  like  an  oven, 
and  thence  termed  the  "  Devil's  Bake  Oven."  A  low  neck  of  land 
connects  this  with  a  range  of  perpendicular  rocks,  which  frown  in 
rugged  precipices  over  the  stream,  and  who.se  summits  are  beautifully 
crowned  with  vegetation.  As  the  current  sweeps  abruptly  around 
this  cape,  another  promontory  is  seen  jutting  out  from  the  opposite 
shore.  Against  this  the  whole  force  of  the  current  beats  with  fear- 
ful velocity,  and,  by  its  attrition,  has  worn  it  away,  until  a  large  frag- 
ment has  been  separated,  and  left  standing  in  solitary  grandeur,  in 
the  midst  of  the  waves.  This  is  the  Grand  Tower.  Its  height  may 
be  fifty  feet,  and  its  diameter  about  the  same.  Its  contour  is  remark- 
ably exact  and  symmetrical,  forming  a  column  as  nearly  circular,  as 
if  its  proportions  had  been  marked  out  by  the  hand  of  art.'  The 
sides  are  nearly  perpendicular,  but  the  different  strata  distinctly  mark- 
ed out.  The  whole  has  ihe  appearance  of  a  regular  column,  whose 
height  is  equal  to  its  diameter.  The  top  is  flat,  and  supports  a 
stratum  of  soil,  which  gives  birth  to  a  short  but  rich  growth  of  trees 
and  shrubs. 

"  In  our  early  history,  this  was  a  noted  spot.  The  river  boats,  which, 
before  the  application  of  steam,  were  propelled  up  the  stream  with 
difficulty,  by  human  labor,  were  unable  to  ascend  this  rapid  pass  with 
oars  or  poles.  Not  only  was  tho  current  too  strong  for  this  operation, 
but  the  danger  of  bein^  dashed  against  the  rocks  was  imminent. 
To  effect  this  object,  it  was  necessary  for  a  portion  of  the  crew  to 


St.  Qencvive  \^ 


St.  Gcnevivc  I. 


Saline  Cr. 


jary's  R. 


MISSISSIPPI. 
No  3. 


Lacoarsea'  L 


86  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

land,  and  an  opportunity  was  offered  to  the  Indians  to  attack  them, 
when  the  prospects  of  resistance  or  of  flight  were  equally  hopeless. 
Here,  then,  they  formed  their  ambuscades,  and  many  a  crew  was 
slain  at  this  spot,  to  gratify  the  savage  lust  for  plunder  and  revenge, 
while  many  boats  were  wrecked,  by  the  violence  of  the  waves."  *  * 
"  The  '  Devil's  Tea  Table,'  and  other  appurtenances  of  the  do- 
minion of  his  Satanic  majesty,  are  found  in  this  neighborhood. 

"  THE  CORNICE  ROCKS  are  great  curiosities.  The  perpendicu- 
lar sides  of  the  limestone  precipices,  have  been  worn  by  the  water 
into  irregular  shapes,  and,  in  some  places,  a  continuous  formation,  re- 
sembling a  handsome  cornice  work,  may  be  seen,  overhanging  the 
cliffs,  whose  sides  represent  columns,  and  other  architectural  devices." 

BAINBRIDGE,  seventeen  miles  below,  in  Cape  Girardieu  county, 
Missouri. 

HAMBURGH,  opposite,  in  Union  county,  Illinois. 

CAPE  GIRARDIEU,  ten  miles  below,  in  Missouri,  in  the  county 
of  the  same  name,  is  pleasantly  situated  on  a  high  bank  of  the  river. 
It  is  the  principal  depot  for  the  southern  part  of  the  state.  The  coun- 
try around  it  is  very  fertile,  and  thickly  inhabited,  for  forty  or  fifty 
miles  back,  to  the  New  Madrid  settlements. 

COMMERCE,  twelve  miles  below,  in  Scott  county,  Missouri. 

OHIO  CITY,  twenty-eight  miles  below,  opposite  Cairo,  in  Missou- 
ri, is  a  small  place,  on  a  more  elevated  bank  than  Cairo.  It  is  now 
in  a  flourishing  condition,  and  bids  fair  to  become  a  considerable  town. 


'O 


ISLAND  NO.  1,  six  miles  below,  behind  which,  in  Kentucky,  are 
the  remains  of  Fort  Jefferson,  erected  by  Gen.  George  Rogers  Clark, 
in  the  spring  of  L7S0.  This  fort  was  erected,  by  order  of  Governor 
Jefferson,  of  Virginia,  in  order  to  protect  the  navigation  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, and  securing  it  to  that  state,  in  which  this  territory  was  then 
included. 

COLUMBUS,  twelve  miles  below,  in  Hickman  county,  Kentucky. 
It  contains  several  stores,  and  a  population  of  about  three  hundred. 
Just  above  it  are  the  Iron  banks,  extending  along  the  river,  on  the 
same  side,  for  about  two  miles.  They  derive  the  name  from  the 
color  of  the  banks,  resembling  iron  rust. 

HICKMAN,  or  MILL'S  POINT,  twenty  miles  below,  is  the  coun- 
ty-seat of  Fulton  county,  Kentucky.  It  contains  two  churches,  twelve 
stores,  several  of  them  forwarding  and  commission,  and  a  large  tobac- 
co stemmery.  Large  quantities  of  tobacco,  corn,  cotton,  cattle,  poul- 
try, &c,  are  annually  shipped  from  here,  it  being  the  depot  for  the 
products  of  a  large  and  fertile  section  of  country.  It  is  the  starting 
point  for  the  great  stage  route  to  Nashville.     Population  five  hundred. 

NEW  MADRID,  forty-four  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  New 
Madrid  county,  Missouri.     It  is  situated  on   a  high  alluvial  bank, 


.   e\  \  Dunkins  Bar 


Obrazo  R 


Grand  Tower 


Jk\    J  Devils  bake  even 


Sandy  I. 


Muddy  &• 

MISSISSIPPI 

No.  4. 


**•&, 


Gi 


'""tf, 


'*  Hamburg 


Devils  Is. 


83  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

which  the  river  is  fast  washing  away.  The  population  is  about  five 
hundred.  This  point  is  quite  famous,  from  the  ravages  made  by  the 
great  earthquake  of  1811.  The  following  description  of  this  disas- 
trous event,  is  from  the  pen  of  Dr.  Hildreth,  of  Marietta,  Ohio,  and 
copied  in  the  Annals  of  the  West,  by  J.  H.  Perkins: 

"  The  center  of  its  violence  was  thought  to  be  near  the  Little 
Prairie,  twenty-five  or  thirty  miles  below  New  Madrid — the  vibra- 
tions from  which  were  felt  all  over  the  valley  of  the  Ohio,  as  high  up 
as  Pittsburgh.  The  first  shock  was  felt  in  the  night  of  the  16th  of 
December,  1811,  and  was  repeated  at  intervals,  with  decreasing  vio- 
lence, into  February  following.  New  Madrid,  having  suffered  more 
than  any  other  town  on  the  Mississippi,  from  its  effects,  was  consider- 
ed as  situated  near  the  focus,  from  whence  the  undulations  proceed- 
ed. From  an  eye-witness,  who  was  then  about  forty  miles  below  that 
town,  in  a  flat-boat,  on  his  way  to  New  Orleans,  with  a  load  of  pro- 
duce, and  who  narrated  the  scene  to  me,  the  agitation  which  con- 
vulsed the  earth  and  the  waters  of  the  mighty  Mississippi,  filled  ev- 
ery living  creature  with  horror.  The  first  shock  took  place  in  the 
night,  while  the  boat  was  lying  at  the  shore,  in  company  with  seve- 
eral  others.  At  this  period,  there  was  danger  apprehended  from  the 
Southern  Indians,  it  being  soon  after  the  battle  of  Tippecanoe,  and, 
for  safety,  several  boats  kept  in  company,  for  mutual  defense,  in  case 
of  an  attack.  In  the  middle  of  the  night,  there  was  a  terrible  shock 
and  jarring  of  the  boats,  so  that  the  crews  were  all  awakened,  and 
hurried  on  deck,  with  their  weapons  of  defense  in  their  hands,  think- 
ing the  Indians  were  rushing  on  board.  The  ducks,  geese,  swans, 
and  various  other  aquatic  birds,  whose  numberless  flocks  were  qui- 
etly resting  in  the  eddies  of  the  river,  were  thrown  into  the  greatest 
tumult,  and,  with  loud  screams,  expressed  their  alarms,  in  accents  of 
terror.  The  noise  and  commotion  soon  became  hushed,  and  nothing 
could  be  discovered,  to  excite  apprehension  ;  so  that  the  boatmen  con- 
cluded that  the  shock  was  occasioned  by  the  falling  in  of  a  large  mass 
of  the  bank  of  the  river,  near  them.  As  soon  as  it  was  light  enough 
to  distinguish  objects,  the  crews  were  all  up,  making  ready  to  depart. 
Directly  a  loud  roaring  and  hissing  was  heard,  like  the  escape  of  steam 
from  a  boiler,  accompanied  by  the  most  violent  agitation  of  the 
shores,  and  tremendous  boiling  up  of  the  waters  of  the  Mississippi,  in 
huge  swells,  rolling  the  waters  below,  back  on  the  descending  stream, 
and  tossing  the  boats  about  so  violently,  that  the  men,  with  difficulty, 
could  keep  their  feet.  The  sand-bars  and  points  of  the  islands  gave 
way,  swallowed  up,  in  the  tumultuous  bosom  of  the  river,  carrying 
down  with  them  the  cotton-wood  trees,  cracking  and  crashing,  toss- 
ing their  arms  to  and  fro,  as  if  sensible  of  their  danger,  while  they 
disappeared  beneath  the  flood.  The  water  of  the  river,  which,  the 
day  before,  was  tolerably  clear,  being  rather  low,  changed  to  a  red- 
dish hue,  and  became  thick  with  mud,  thrown  up  from  its  bottom; 
while  the  surface,  lashed  violently  by  the  agitation  of  the  earth  be- 
neath, was  covered  with  foam,  which,  gathering  into  masses,  the  size 
of  a  barrel,  floated  along  on  the  trembling  surface.  The  earth  on 
the  shores  opened  in  wide  fissures,  and,  closing  again,  threw  the 
water,  sand,  and  mud,  in  huge  jets,  higher  than  the  tops  of  the  trees. 


Hickman  Cy.,  Ky. 


90  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

The  atmosphere  was  filled  with  a  thick  vapor  or  gas,  to  which  the 
light  imparted  a  purple  tinge,  altogether  different,  in  appearance,  from 
the  autumnal  haze  of  Indian  summer,  or  that  of  smoke.     From  the 
temporary  check  to  the  current,  by  the  heaving  up  of  the  bottom,  the 
sinking  of  the  banks  and  sand-bars  into  the  bed  of  the  stream,  the 
river  rose,  in  a  few  minutes,  five  or  six  feet ;  and,  impatient  of  the  re- 
straint, again  rushed  forward,  with  redoubled  impetuosity,  hurrying 
along  the  boats,  now  set  loose  by  the  horror-struck  boatmen,  as  in  less 
danger  on  the  water  than  at  the  shore,  where  the  banks  threatened 
every  moment  to  destroy  them,  by  the  falling  earth,  or  carry  them 
down  in  the  vortices  of  the  sinking  masses.     Many  boats  were  over- 
whelmed, in  this  manner,  and  their  crews  perished  with  them.     It  re- 
quired the  utmost  exertions  of  the  men,  to  keep  the  boat,  of  which 
my  informant  was  the  owner,  in  the  middle  of  the  river,  as  far  from 
the  shores,  sand-bars,  and  islands,  as  they  could.     Numerous  boats 
were  wrecked  on  the  snags  and  old  trees  thrown  up  from  the  bottom 
of  the  Mississippi,  where  they  had  quietly  rested  for  ages ;  while  oth- 
ers were  sunk  or  stranded  on  the  sand-bars  and  islands.     At  New 
Madrid,  several  boats  were  carried,  by  the  reflux  of  the  current,  into 
a  small  stream,  that  puts  into  the  river  just  above  the  town,  and  left 
on  the  ground  by  the  returning  waters,  a  considerable  distance  from 
the  Mississippi.     A  man,  who  belonged  to  one  of  the  company  boats, 
was  left,  for  several  hours,  on  the  upright  trunk  of  an  old  snag,  in  the 
middle  of  the  river,  against  which  his  boat  was  wrecked  and  sunk. 
It  stood  with  the  roots  a  few  feet  above  the  water,  and  to  these  he 
contrived  to  attach  himself,  while  every  fresh  shock  threw  the  agita- 
ted waves  against  him,  and  kept  gradually  settling  the  tree  deeper 
into  the  mud  at  the  bottom,  bringing  him  nearer  and  nearer  to  the 
deep,  muddy  waters,  which,  to  his  terrified  imagination,  seemed  de- 
sirous of  swallowing  him  up.     While  hanging  here,  calling  with  pit- 
eous shouts  for  aid,  several  boats  passed  by,  without  being  able  to  re- 
lieve him,  until,  finally,  a  skiff   was  well  manned,  rowed  a   short 
distance  above  him,  and  dropped  down  stream,  close  to  the  snag,  from 
which  he  tumbled  into  the  boat,  as  she   floated  by.     The  scenes 
which  occurred  for  several  days,  during  the  repeated  shocks,  were 
horrible.     The  most  destructive  took  place  in  the  beginning,  although 
they  were  repeated  for  many  weeks,  becoming  lighter  and  lighter,  un- 
til they  died  away  in  slight  vibrations,  like  the  jarring  of  steam  in  an 
immense  boiler.     The  sulphurated  gasses  that  were  discharged  du- 
ring the  shocks,  tainted  the  air  with  their  noxious  effluvia,  and  s* 
strongly  impregnated  the  water  of  the  river,  to  the  distance  of  one 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  below,  that  it  could  hardly  be  used  for  any 
purpose  for  several  days.     New  Madrid,  which  stood  on  a  bluff  bank, 
fifteen  or  twenty  feet  above  the  summer  floods,  sunk  so  low,  that  the 
next  rise  covered  it  to  the  depth  of  five  feet.     The  bottoms  Of  seve- 
ral fine    lakes    in  the  vicinity  were  elevated,  so  as  to  become  dry 
land,  and  have  since  been  planted  with  corn."     Slight  oscillations  and 
shocks  continued  to  be  felt  for  years,  along  this  region,  and  are  even 
now  occasionally  experienced. 

POINT  PLEASANT,  seven  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is 


Banks 


MISSISSIPPI 

No.  6. 


fe  \  Obioa  Cy.,  Tenn. 


92  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

a  small  settlement  of  six  or  seven  houses.     Large  quantities  of  corn 
are  shipped  from  this  point. 

RIDDLE'S  POINT,  three  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is  only 
a  landing  point,  for  goods,  destined  for  the  interior,  and  for  the  receipt 
of  produce.  The  whole  country,  for  miles,  along  the  river,  here,  is 
extremely  rich,  yielding  immense  quantities  of  corn. 

WALKER'S  BEND,  eighteen  miles  below.  This  is,  simply,  a 
large  bend  of  the  river,  so  named  by  the  boatmen. 

LITTLE  PRAIRIE,  seven  miles  below,  in  New  Madrid  county, 
Missouri.  This  is  the  point  where,  it  is  thought,  was  the  center  of 
the  vibrations  of  the  great  earthquake. 

NEEDHAM'S  CUT-OFF,  twenty-four  miles  below. 

ASHPORT,  eight  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  Tennessee. 

OSCEOLA,  twelve  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Mississippi 
county,  Arkansas.  It  is  only  a  small  village.  This  is  just  at  the 
head  of  Plumb  Point  Bars,  the  most  difficult  and  dangerous  part  of 
the  Mississippi  river.  Scarcely  a  season  passes  by,  without  accidents 
here,  and  many  steamboats  have  been  sunk,  portions  of  which  are 
yet  visible,  in  low  water. 

FULTON,  ten  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is  a  place  of  only 
,  a  few  houses,  and  a  landing  point  for  the  interior  country. 

RANDOLPH,  ten  miles  below,  in  Tipton  county,  Tennessee,  is 
rather  a  dilapidated  town,  at  the  head  of  the  second  Chickasaw 
bluffs,  and  at  the  mouth  of  Hatchee  river.  Large  quantities  of  cot- 
ton are  shipped  from  this  place  to  New  Orleans.  Immediately  oppo- 
site this  point,  is  seen  the  first  cotton  plantation,  in  descending  the 
river. 

GREENOCK,  forty-seven  miles  below,  is  a  small  village,  the  coun- 
ty-seat of  Crittenden  county,  Arkansas. 

MEMPHIS,  twenty  miles  below,  in  Shelby  county,  Tennessee,  is 
beautifully  situated  on  the  fourth  Chickasaw  blnff,  just  below  the 
mouth  of  Wolf  river.  This  spot  was  formerly  the  site  of  Fort  As- 
sumption, used  for  the  purpose  of  protecting  the  country  against  the 
Chickasaws,  to  chastise  whom  a  French  army  of  nearly  four  thous- 
and, white,  red,  and  black,  were  gathered  here.  They  remained  in  a 
state  of  inactivity,  from  the  summer  of  1739  to  the  spring  of  1740. 
during  which  time,  hundreds  of  them  sickened  and  died,  when  in 
March  of  the  last  named  year,  peace  was  concluded.  The  blnff  on 
which  it  stands,  is  thirty  feet  above  the  highest  Hoods,  and  its  base  is 
washed  by  the  river,  for  a  distance  of  three  miles,  while  a  bed  of 
sand-stone,  the  only  known  stratum  of  rocks  below  the  Ohio,  juts  in- 
to the  stream,  and  forms  a  convenient  landing.  From  the  Ohio  to 
Vicksburgh,  a  distance  of  six  hundred  and  fifty  miles,  it  is  the  only 
site  for  a  commercial  mart,  on  either  side  of  the  Mississippi. 


Obion  Cy.,  Tenn 


Dyer  Cy.,  Tenn. 

MISSISSIPPI 

No.  7. 


94  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

The  appearance  of  Memphis  from,  the  river,  is  very  beautiful  and 
imposing.  Some  distance  from  the  brow  of  the  bluff,  a  handsome 
range  of  fine  buildings  extends  for  several  squares,  and  gives  an  air 
of  business  to  it,  which  is  manifested  by  few  places  of  its  size.  This 
point  has  been  selected  by  the  United  States  government,  for  the  erec- 
tion of  a  new  Navy  Yard,  and  the  necessary  buildings  for  that  pur- 
pose are  now  in  course  of  erection,  on  a  large  scale.  The  beautiful 
situation  of  Memphis,  and  its  connection  with  a  fine  country,  together 
with  the  great  distance  from  any  other  point  on  the  river,  where  a 
large  city  could  be  built,  give  it  superior  advantages  in  becoming  a 
place  of  great  importance.  Immense  quantities  of  cotton  are  grown 
in  the  interior  country,  and  this  is  the  principal  mart  and  shipping 
point  for  it.  One  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  bales  of  cotton  are 
annually  shipped  from  this  place.  It  contains,  at  present,  six  church- 
es, an  academy,  two  medical  colleges,  a  number  of  private  schools,  a 
large  number  of  stores,  some  of  them  doing  an  extensive  business,  an 
office  of  the  Magnetic  Telegraph,  and  a  population  of  ten  thousand. 

PICKERING,  two  miles  below,  in  Tennessee,  contains  several 
commission  houses,  located  here,  on  account  of  the  good  landing, 
which  the  river  affords. 

NORFOLK,  eight  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  Mississippi. 

COMMERCE,  twenty-five  miles  below,  in  Mississippi,  was  laid 
out,  some  years  ago,  on  a  very  large  scale,  and  a  railroad  to  the  inte- 
rior commenced.  It  has  not  improved  any,  and  contains  only  a  few 
small  houses.     The  railroad  has  been  abandoned. 

ST.  FRANCIS  RIVER,  twelve  miles  below,  in  Arkansas,  runs  al- 
most parallel  with  the  Mississippi  for  a  great  distance,  and  drains  the 
lakes  and  swamps  which  are  filled  with  its  overflows. 

CURRAN,  or  STERLING,  is  a  small  cluster  of  houses,  at  the 
lower  side  of  the  mouth  of  St.  Francis  river. 

HELENA,  twelve  miles  below,  is  the  county  seat  of  Phillips  coun- 
ty, Arkansas.  It  contains  one  church,  thirteen  stores,  one  newspa- 
per printing  office,  three  saw  mills,  and  a  population  of  about  four 
hundred.  There  is  a  very  handsome  range  of  hills,  immediately  back 
of  it— the  only  ones  seen  along  the  river  for  some  distance.  Consider- 
able cotton,  brought  down  the  St.  Francis  river,  and  from  the  interior 
country,  is  shipped  from  this  place. 

YAZOO  PASS,  or  BAYOU,  eight  miles  below,  in  Mississippi, 
connects  the  Mississippi  river  with  the  Yazoo  river  at  this  point,  en- 
abling fiat-boats  to  pass  through  an  immense  section  of  fertile  coun- 
try, to  the  latter  river,  a  distance  of  nearly  three  hundred  miles.  Ex- 
tensive cotton  plantations  are  opening  on  it. 

DELTA,  on  the  lower  side  of  the  mouth  of  the  bayou,  is  a  new 
village,  containing  fifteen  or  twenty  houses.  It  is  the  county-seat  of 
Choctaw  county,  Mississippi. 


96  THE   MISS]        IFP-I    BIVCR 

HORSE  SHOE  BEND  and  CUT-OFF,  eight  miles  below.  This 
is  a  large  bend  of  the  rive;,  so  c  .  its  resemblance  to  a  horse- 

shoe.    A  cut-off  has  been  made  across  it. 

MONTGOMERY'S  POINT,  fifty-eight  miles  below,  in  Arkansas, 
is  the  landing  point  for  goods  destined  to  the  White  river  country. 
It  contains  only  one  or  two  houses. 

VICTORIA,  opposite,  in  Mississippi,  is  also  a  landing  point  for  the 
interior  country. 

WHITE  RIVER,  four  miles  below,  in  Arkansas. 

NAFOLEON,  sixteen  miles  below,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Arkansas 
river,  is  a  flourishing  little  place,  and  bids  fair  to  become  a  town  of 
importance.  It  is  the  depot  and  landing  point  for  goods  destined  for, 
and  for  produce  brought  down,  the  Arkansas  river. 

ARKANSAS  RIVER.  This  river,  from  which  the  state  derives 
its  name,  Is,  uext  to  the  Missouri,  the  largest  western  tributary  of  the 
Mississippi.  "The  length  of  this  mighty  stream,  which  is  said  to 
meander  a  long  distance  in  the  Rocky  Mountains,  following  its  courses, 
is  about  two  thousand  miles.  It  pours  a  broad  and  deep  stream 
from  the  mountains  upon  the  arid  and  sandy  plains  below.  The 
sand  and  the  dry  surrounding  atmosphere  absorb  the  water  to  such  a 
degree,  that  in  many  seasons  it  may  be  forded  many  hundred  miles 
below  the  mountains.  Some  of  its  tributaries  are  so  impregnated  with 
salt,  as  to  render  even  the  waters  of  the  main  stream  unpotable.  The 
alluvial  earth  along  its  banks  contains  so  much  salt,  that  cattle  are 
said  sometimes  to  be  killed  by  eating  it.  To  the  distance  of  about 
four  hundred  miles  from  its  mouth,  it  has  many  lakes  and  bayous. 
In  high  water  it  is  navigable  for  steam-boats,  as  high  up  as  Canton- 
ment Gil  son,  at  the  mouth  of  Grand  river,  by  water  seven  hundred 
and  fifty  miles." 

"LITTLE  ROCK  is  situated  about  three  hundred  miles,  by  the 
course  of  the  river,  and  about  one  hundred  and  twenty  by  land,  above 
the  mouth  of  the  Arkansas.  It  is  the  capital  of  the  state  of  Arkan- 
sas. It  stands  on  the  south  bank,  on  a  very  high  stone  bluff,  and  has 
been  ironically  rvarrited  Little  Rock  from  the  prodigious  size  and  mas- 
ses of  rock  about  it.  The  situation  is  healthy  and  pleasant,  and  be- 
ins  the  metropolis,  a  considerable  village  has  grown  up  here.  It  has 
a  court  house,  jail,  and  a  printing  office,  from  which  is  issued  a 
weekl  y  newspaper." 

BOLIV  \R.  C.  H.,  thirteen  miles  below,  in  Mississippi,  is  merely  a 
landing,  formerly  the  place  of  a  court  house. 

COLUMBIA,  fifty-three  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat  of  Chicot 
comi  rkansas.     It  is  a  very  pleasant  looking  place,  containing 

four  or  five  stores,  and  a  population  of  about  two  hundred  and  fifty- 
Here  commences  the  great  cotton  growing  region,  and  the  banks  of 
the  river  are  almost  one  succession  of  plantations,  with  their  hand- 


WV.l'R. 
Mempki* 


93  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

some  clusters  of   negro  quarters.     Just  below  this  commences  the 
growth  of  the  Spanish  moss. 

POINT  CHICOT,  four  miles  below,  in  Arkansas,  was  formerly 
the  county-seat  of  Chicot  county.  It  is  now  merely  a  fine  plantation, 
with  a  large  number  of  fine  negro  quarters. 

GREENVILLE,  four  miles  below,  in  Mississippi,  is  a  small 
village. 

BAYOU  MASON,  or  GRAND  LAKE  LANDING,  thirty  miles 
below,  in  Yazoo  county,  Mississippi,  is  the  landing  point  for  the 
plantations  on  Grand  Lake,  a  few  miles  in  the  interior. 

PRINCETON,  four  miles  below,  in  the  same  county,  is  a  small 
village,  containing  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  inhabitants.  It  is  the 
landing  point  for  the  plantations  on  Lake  Washington,  five  miles  in 
the  interior. 

BUNCH'S  CUT-OFF,  ten  miles  below,  is  a  cut-off,  a  short  distance 
across  the  swamp,  the  river  running  around,  in  an  almost  circular 
form,  eighteen  miles. 

LAKE  PROVIDENCE,  nineteen  miles  below,  on  the  right,  is  the 
seat  of  justice  of  Concordia  Parish,  Louisiana.  It  is  a  very  hand- 
some village,  and  has  considerable  trade,  in  shipping  cotton  and  sup- 
plying the  planters  in  the  interior  country-  Population  about  three 
hundred.  Just  back  of  the  town  is  the  lake,  from  which  it  derives 
its  name,  on  the  banks  of  which  there  are  a  number  of  fine  cotton 
plantations.  On  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  there  is  a  very  large, 
fine  plantation,  with  a  number  of  houses  and  negro  quarters,  giving 
it  the  appearance  of  a  town. 

TOMPKJN'S  SETTLEMENT,  fifteen  miles  below,  in  Louisiana, 
is,  as  its  name  implies,  a  settlement  of  a  number  of  planters,  extend- 
ing along  the  river. 

BRUNSWICK  LANDING,  fou/teen  miles  below. 

MILLIKIN'S  SETTLEMENT,  twelve  miles  below,  in  Louisiana, 

is  a  large  settlement  of  planters. 

Y^AZOO  RIVER,  eight  miles  below,  in  Mississippi.  "  The  Yazoo 
river  takes  its  rise  in  the  north-eastern  part  of  the  state  of  Mississippi, 
and  takes  its  name  at  the  point  of  junction  with  it  of  the  Yellabusha 
and  Tallehatchee  rivers,  two  hundred  and  sixty  miles  above  its 
mouth.  Laflone  is  the  chief  town  at  the  mouth  of  Tallehatchee  and 
Yallebusha  and  at  the  head  of  steamboat  navigation  ;  however,  there 
are  small  steamers  running  still  higher  up  these  tributaries,  in  high 
water.  The  country  adjacent  to  this  beautiful  river,  in  a  very  few  of 
the  late  years,  has  risen  in  agriculture  and  wealth  beyond  compar- 
ison. About  ten  steamers  ply  between  Laflone  and  New  Orleans,  in 
the  cotton  season,  as  regular  packets,  passing  the  flourishing  towns 
of  Yazoo  City  and  Tchula,  the  former  one  hundred  miles  and  the 


punn's 
Woodyard 


St.  Francis  K.   /i 

'^Sterling  or  J 
Curran :::;:: 


MISSISSIPPI 

No.  10. 


100  THE    MISSISSIPIl    RIVEft. 

latter  one  hundred  and  ninety  miles  from  its  junction  with  the  IVlis- 
sississippi.  Navigation  on  the  Yazoo  is  safer  than  any  other  river  in 
the  south  or  west.  The  importance  of  the  Yazoo  country  can  hetter 
be  judged  by  its  productions  of  cotton — the  number  of  bales  coming 
out  of  that  river  annually  is  set  down  at  one  hundred  and  forty 
thousand.'' 

'  WALNUT  HILLS,  ten  miles  below.  "  These  beautiful  hills,  about 
two  miles  in  extent  on  the  river,  rise  boldly,  though  gradually,  with 
alternate  swells  and  gullies,  to  the  height  of  nearly  five  hundred  feet ; 
and  being  under  the  highest  state  of  cultivation,  form  the  most  beauti- 
ful prospect  to  be  met  with  on  the  lower  Mississippi." 

VICKSBURGH,  two  and  one-half  miles  below,  is  the  county-seat 
of  Warren  county,  Mississippi.  It  is  situated  on  a  hill,  the  highest 
part  of  which  is  two  hundred  feet  above  high  water  mark.  The 
principal  business  part  of  the  city  is  situated  on  the  bottom,  along  the 
river.  It  was  incorporated  as  a  town  in  1825,  and  as  a  city,  in  1836. 
The  country  surrounding  it  is  a  black  loamy  soil,  well  adapted  to  the 
cultivation  of  all  kinds  of  grain,  tobacco,  cotton,  &e.  The  principal 
product  is  cotton,  of  which  seventy-five  thousand  bales  are  annually 
shipped  from  here.  Within  the  few  past  years,  Vicksburgh  has  been 
improving  very  rapidly,  and  the  fine  section  of  country,  with  which  it  is 
surrounded,  as  well  as  the  beautiful  site  of  the  city,  and  the  fine  har- 
bor of  the  river  (which  is  here  from  ninety  to  three  hundred  feet  deep), 
all  give  it  superior  advantages,  for  a  rapid  and  healthy  growth.  There 
is  a  railroad  extending  from  it  to  Jackson,  the  seat  of  government,  a 
distance  of  fifty  miles.  The  city  contains  a  court  house,  five  church- 
es, three  academies,  a  hospital,  a  theater,  twelve  schools,  and  two 
foundries,  doing  a  good  business.  The  population  is  abont  five 
thousand. 

The  place  became  notorious,  some  years  ago,  for  the  summary  pro- 
ceedings taken  against  the  gamblers,  who  infested  it  to  so  great  a  de- 
cree, as  to  threaten  the  entire  destruction  of  the  welfare  and  morals  of 
the  community.  A  public  meeting  of  the  citizens  was  held,  and 
warning  given  to  all  gamblers,  who  frequented  the  city,  to  remove, 
within  a  given  time.  They  refused  to  do  so,  and  manifested  a  deter- 
mination to  overawe  and  break  down  public  authority.  The  citizens 
thereupon  united,  and,  having  caught  a  number  of  them,  removed 
them  a  shore  distance  from  the  city,  and  publicly  executed  several  of 
them,  by  hanging. 

WARREN  TON,  ten  miles  below,  is  a  small  village  in  Mississippi. 

PALMYRA  SETTLEMENT,  fifteen  miles  below,  in  Mississippi. 

CARTHAGE  LANDING,  four  miles  below,  in  Louisiana. 

POINT  PLEASANT,  ten  miles  below,  in  Louisiana,  is  a  landing 
point,  with  a  few  houses. 

BIG  BLACK  CREEK,  fourteen  miles  below.     Here  the  river  sud- 
denly turns  to  the  right,  occasioned  by  a  high  bluff  point  (rocky  at 


102  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

its  base),  about  throe-quarters  of  a  mile  below  the  creek.  This  is  cal- 
led the  Grand  Gulf.  Two  miles  below,  in  Claiborne  county,  Missis- 
sippi, is  the  town  of 

GRAND  GULF,  very  pleasantly  situated,  on  an  elevated  bank,  and 
enjoying-  considerable  trade  in  cotton,  and  also  in  supplies  for  the 
neighboring  plantations.  It  contains  two  churches,  a  town  hall,  a 
hospital,  a  theater,  a  cotton  press,  a  steam  saw  and  grist  mill,  and  a 
population  of  about  one  thousand. 

BAYOU  PIERRE,  ten  miles  below,  in  Mississippi.  Keel-boats 
can  ascend  this  bayou,  a  great  part  of  the  year,  as  far  as  Port  Gib- 
son, about  twenty-eight  miles  from  its  mouth.  Port  Gibson  is  a  very 
flourishing  place,  and  the  county-seat  of  Claiborne  county,  Mississippi. 

BRUINSBURGH  is  a  small  place,  on  the  lower  side  of  Bayou 

Pierre. 

RODNEY,  ten  miles  below,  at  the  Petit  Gulf,  in  Jefferson  county, 
Miss.,  is  situated  just  under  the  bluffs.  Its  progress,  some  years  ago, 
was  very  rapid,  and  much  improvement  was  made,  but  it  has  been 
reputed  to  be  very  unhealthy,  and,  of  late  years,  it  has  improved  but 
very  little.  It  contains  several  stores,  a  fine  steam  saw  mill,  and  a 
population  of  about  five  hundred. 

NATCHEZ.forty-one  miles  below,  was  founded  in  1700,  by  D'lber- 
ville,  who  had  been  sent  out  from  France,  to  conduct  the  explorations 
begun  by  La  Salle,  but  which  had  so  unfortunately  been  terminated 
by  his  death.  D'lberville  proposed  to  found  a  city  here,  to  be  named, 
in  honor  of  the  Countess  of  Pontchartrain,  Rosalie.  In  1714,  the 
fort,  called  Rosalie,  was  built  on  this  spot,  then  occupied  by  the  Nat- 
chez, a  powerful  and  intelligent  tribe  of  Indians,  in  the  valley  of  the 
Mississippi.  "  They  were  fdolaters,  worshipers  of  the  sun,  and  had 
a  temple  and  an  altar,  dedicated  to  that  luminary,  on  which  a  perpet- 
ual fire  burned.  At  first,  they  treated  the  French  colonists  with  great 
kindness.  In  1722,  the  Chickasaws  gave  them  trouble,  and  attacked 
and  destroyed  a  fort  on  the  Yazoo.  The  friendly  exertions  of  the 
Natchez  saved  the  settlers.  The  next  year,  the  commandant  at  Fort 
Rosalie  treated  them  with  indignity  and  injustice.  The  quarrel  began 
between  an  old  Natchez  warrior  and  a  soldier,  about  some  corn. 
The  Natchez  challenged  the  Frenchman  to  single  combat,  who,  in 
alarm,  cried  murder.  The  Natchez  turned  to  depart  from  the  camp, 
was  fired  on  by  the  guard,  and  mortally  wounded.  No  punishment 
was  inflicted  on  the  perpetrators,  while,  in  other  respects,  the  command- 
ant rendered  himself  odious  to  the  Natchez.  The  murder  of  the  war- 
rior aroused  the  whole  tribe  to  seek  revenge,  and  they  attacked  the 
French  in  all  quarters,  and  killed  many  of  them.  At  last  the  Stung  Ser- 
pent, an  influential  chief,  interposed  his  authority  ;  a  treaty  of  peace 
was  made,  and  former  confidence  restored.  The  peace  served  to  lull  the 
Natchez  into  security,  and  gave  the  French  opportunity  to  meditate 
and  execute  one  of  the  blackest  acts  of  treacherw  The  Governor  of 
Louisiana,  Bienville,  ratified  the  treaty,  and,  soon  after,  in  a  most  cau- 
tious and  dastardly  manner,  arrived  at  Fort  Rosalie,  with  seven  hun- 


Ichoctaw  Cy.,  Miss, 


104  THE    MISS  I SS  IP  PI, RIVER. 

dred  men,  and  attacked  and  slaughtered  the  defenseless  natives  for 
four  days.  From  this  time,  the  Natchez  despaired  of  living  in  peace 
with  the  French,  and  secretly  and  silently  plotted  their  destruction. 
In  1729.  M.  de  Chopart,  the  commander  of  the  Fort,  stung  them  to 
madness,  by  attempting  to  build  a  town,  on  the  site  of  the  village  of 
White  Apple,  a  large  Indian  town,  situated  about  twelve  miles  below 
the  city  of  Natchez,  and  three  miles  from  the  Mississippi,  and  which 
they  regarded  as  a  sacred  place.  He  ordered  their  huts  to  be  removed, 
and  the  Indians  to  leave  the  village.  Among  the  fruitful  expedients 
to  gain  time,  till  they  could  unite  the  warriors  of  the  nation,  and  de- 
vise means  to  take  vengeance  on  their  enemies,  they  proposed  to  give 
the  French  commandant,  each,  one  fowl  and  one  basket  of  corn,  for 
permission  to  remain  till  harvest.  They  held  frequent  and  secret 
councils  amongst  themselves,  and  invited  the  Chickasaws  to  join 
them.  Notwithstanding  their  secrecy,  one  of  their  chief  women  sus- 
pected the  plot,  and  revealed  it  to  a  soldier.  Still,  M.  Chopart  disre- 
garded the  warning.  The  plot  being  matured,  on  the  3d  of  Novem- 
ber, 1729,  the  Grand  Sun,  with  his  warriors,  repaired  to  the  Fort,  with 
the  tribute  of  corn  and  fowls.  They  rushed  into  the  gate,  disarmed 
the  soldiers,  and  commenced  an  indiscriminate  massacer.  The  slaves 
and  a  few  of  the  women  and  children  were  saved.  All  the  men  were 
murdered.  Not  a  chief  or  warrior  would  stain  his  hands  with  the 
blood  of  M.  Chopart.  and  one  of  the  meanest  of  the  Indians  was  or- 
dered to  kill  him  with  a  wooden  tomahawk".  The  settlement  con- 
tained about  seven  hundred  French,  of  whom  a  very  few,  only,  es- 
caped. The  forts  and  settlements  on  the  Yazoo  and  Wachita  shared 
the  same  fate.  The  news  of  this  massacer  filled  New  Orleans  with 
alarm  and  dismay ;  but  M.  Perier,  the  commandant,  was  very  active 
in  devising  the  means  of  redress.  The  French  gained  the  Chicka- 
saws to  their  side,  who  furnished  fifteen  hundred  warriors,  which  were 
met,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Natchez,  with  a  detachment  of  troops 
from  New  Orleans,  under  command  of  M.  Loubois.  The  Natchez  ex- 
pected to  be  attacked,  and  had  strongly  fortified  themselves  in  the  Fort. 
They  professed  to  be  desirous  of  peace,  and  much  finesse  was  em- 
ployed on  both  sides.  At  last  the  Natchez  contrived  to  desert  the 
Fort  at  night,  and,  loaded  with  plunder,  they  crossed  the  Mississippi, 
and  returned  to  a  position  on  Red  river,  a  few  miles  below  Nachito- 
clies.  Here  they  erected  a  fort.  M.  Perier  having  received  a  rein- 
forcement from  France,  marched  a  strong  force,  with  artillery,  against 
them.  They  defended  themselves  bravely,  made  several  desperate 
sallies,  but  were  repulsed  with  great  slaughter.  Their  defense  and 
attempts  to  negotiate  a  peace,  were  all  in  vain,  and  they  finally  sur- 
rendered at  discretion.  The  women  and  children  were  reduced  to 
slavery,  and  dispersed  among  the  plantations.  The  remnants  of  this 
ence  powerful  nation  were  finally  sent  to  St.  Domingo.  Thus  per- 
ished the  most  enlightened,  civilized,  and  noble  tribe  of  this  conti- 
nent. A  few  fugitives,  who  escaped  the  massacer,  fled  to  the  Chick- 
asaws and  Creeks,  and  became  amalgamated  with  those  tribes. 

"  We  have  already  stated,  that  the  religion  of  the  Natchez  was  idol- 
atrous. One  of  their  customs  was  barbarous.  On  the  death  of  a 
Chief,  or  Sun,  as  they  were  called,  and  on  some  other  occasions,  hu- 


hlSSISSIPP 

No.  13. 


106  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

man  sacrifices  were  offered.  Their  chief  suns  were  invested  with 
absolute  power,  and  there  were  inferior  suns,  that  constituted  a  kind 
of  subordinate  nobility.  The  Natchez  are  represented  by  different 
authors  as  just,  humane,  and  ready  to  extend  relief  to  objects  of  dis- 
tress. Charlevoix,  who  spent  some  days  with  them,  in  1721,  gives 
various  details  of  their  manners,  customs,  and  religion.  He  states 
that  on  the  death  of  a  chief,  or  sun,  his  nurse,  and,  frequently,  his 
body-guards,  to  the  number  of  one  hundred,  or  more,  were  put  to 
death," that  he  might  be  followed  to  the  'spirit  land'  with  a  retinue, 
equal  to  his  rank  on  earth.  Besides  the  sun  and  fire,  they  worshiped 
little  wooden  gods,  in  the  shape  of  monkies  and  rattlesnakes,  placed 
on  the  altars." 

Such  is  the  interesting  account  given  of  the  habits  and  destruction 
of  this  powerful  tribe,  by  Judge  Peck,  in  his  sketches  of  the  Missis- 
sippi valley. 

The  ruins  of  Fort  Rosalie  were  visible  in  1S23,  at  which  time  the 
city  contained  seven  hundred  inhabitants. 

"This  city  is  romantically  situated  on  a  very  high  bluff  of  the 
east  bank  of  the  river,  and  is  much  the  largest  town  in  the  state  of 
Mississippi.  The  river  business  is  transacted  in  that  part  of  the  city 
which  is  called  'Under  the  Hill.'  Great  numbers  of  boats  are  always 
lying  here,  and  some  very  respectable  merchants  reside  in  ibis  part 
of  the  city.  The  upper  town  is  elevated  on  the  summit  of  the  bluff, 
three  hundred  feet  above  the  level  of  the  river,  and  commands  a  fine 
prospect  of  the  surrounding  landscape.  The  country  on  the  eastern 
bank  is  waving,  rich,  and  beautiful,  the  eminences  presenting  open 
woods,  covered  with  grape  vines,  and  here  and  there  neat  country 
houses.  This  part  of  the  town  is  quiet;  the  streets  broad  ;  some  of 
the  public  buildings  are  handsome:  and  the  whole  has  the  appear- 
ance of  comfort  and  opulence.  Many  rich  planters  live  here ;  and 
the  society  is  polished  and  respectable.  It  is  the  principal  town  in 
this  region  for  the  shipment  of  cotton,  with  bales  of  which,  at  the 
proper  seasons  of  the  year,  the  streets  are  almost  barricaded  ;  and  it  is 
the  market  for  the  trade  of  the  numerous  population  of  the  contigu- 
ous country.  Notwithstanding  the  elevation,  and  apparent  healthi- 
ness of  the  city,  it  has  often  been  visited  by  the  bellow  Fever.  It  is 
owing  to  this  circumstance  that  the  population  does  not  increase  so 
fast  as  might  be  expected  from  its  eligible  position.  It  is  at  present 
supposed  to  contain  about  one  thousand  five  hundred  houses,  and 
about  eight  thousand  inhabitants.  It  has  three  churches,  a  handsome 
court,  house,  four  banks,  two  book  stores,  three  printing  offices,  and 
the  usual  number  of'  mercantile  stores." 

There  are  several  extensive  (ounderies  and  manufactories  in  suc- 
cessful operation,  and  much  attention  has  been  given,  within  the  few 
past  years,  to  the  manufacturing  of  engines,  cotton  presses,  sugar 
mills,  and  other  articles,  winch  tend  greatly  to  increase  the  wealth 
and  improvements  of  the  city.  Natchez  was  visited,  in  1840,  by  a 
tremendous  tornado,  which  swept  through  (lie  city,  with  great  destruc- 
tion, destroying  many  vi  the  finest  buildings,  and  leaving  all  in  its 
path  a  mass  of  ruins.  It  has  now.  however,  recovered  from  this 
shock,  scarcely  any  vestiges  of  which  can  be  seen. 


Yazoo  Cy„  Miss. 


108  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

ELLIS'S  CLIFFS,  a  high  ridge  of  land,  eighteen  miles  below,  and 
extending-  for  some  miles  along  the  river,  on  the  Mississippi  side. 

HQMOCHITTO  RIVER,  twenty-six  miles  below. 

LOFTUS  HEIGHTS  and  FORT  ADAMS,  ten  miles  below. 
A  fort  was  erected  here,  in  early  times,  a  few  ruins  of  which  only 
remain. 

RED  RIVER,  upper  mouth,  eleven  miles  helow.  This  is  one  of 
the  most  consideral  tributaries  of  the  Mississippi ;  and  as  little  is  gen- 
erally known  concerning  it,  the  following  accurate  and  authentic  de- 
scription is  extracted  from  the  excellent  geography  of  Mr.  Flint,  lately 
published  : 

"It  takes  its  rise  in  a  chain  of  hills  near  Santa  Fe,  in  New  Mex- 
ico, called  the  Caous  mountains.  In  its  upper  course,  it  receives  the 
waters  of  Blue  river  and  False  Washita.  It  winds  through  a  region 
of  prairies,  on  which  feed  droves  of  buffalo,  cattle,  and  wild  horses. 
These  immense  prairies  are  of  a  red  soil,  covered  with  grass  and 
white  vines,  which  bear  the  most  delicious  grapes.  It  receives  a 
great  many  tributaries,  that  water  an  almost  boundless  region  of 
prairies,  forests,  bottoms,  and  highlands.  Much  of  this  country  is 
exceedingly  fertile,  and  capable  of  producing  cotton,  sugar-cane, 
grapes,  indigo,  rice,  tobacco,  Indian  corn,  and  most  of  the  productions 
of  the  more  northern  regions.  The  width  of  its  channel,  for  four 
hundred  miles  before  it  enters  into  the  Mississippi,  does  not  correspond 
with  its  length,  or  the  immense  mass  of  waters  which  it  collects  in 
its  course  from  the  Rocky  Mountains.  In  high  waters,  when  it  has 
arrived  within  three  or  four  hundred  miles  from  its  mouth,  it  is  often 
divided  into  two  or  three  channels,  and  spreads  into  a  line  of  bayous 
and  lakes,  which  take  up  its  superabundant  waters,  and  are  a  con- 
siderable time  in  filling,  and  prevent  the  river  from  displaying  its 
breadth  and  amount  of  waters,  as  it  does  in  the  high  lands,  five  hun- 
dred miles  above.  About  ninety  miles  above  Natchitoches,  commences 
what  is  called  the  Raft,  which  is  nothing  more  than  an  immense 
swampy  alluvial  of  the  river,  to  the  width  of  twenty  or  thirty  miles. 
The  river  here,  spreading  into  a  vast  number  of  channels,  frequently 
shallow,  of  course,  has  been  for  ages  clogging  up  with  a  compact 
mass  of  timber  and  fallen  trees,  wafted  from  the  regions  above.  Be- 
tween these  masses,  the  river  has  a  channel,  sometimes  lost  in  a  lake 
and  found  again  by  following  the  outlet  of  that  lake  back  to  the  pa- 
rent channel.  There  is  no  stage  of  Avater  in  which  a  keel-boat,  with 
an  experienced  pilot  may  not  make  its  way  through  the  Raft.  The 
river  is  blocked  up  with  this  immense  mass  of  timber,  a  distance,  by 
its  meanders,  of  between  sixty  and  seventy  miles.  There  are  places 
where  the  water  can  be  seen  in  motion  under  the  logs.  In  other 
places,  the  whole  width  of  the  river  may  be  crossed  on  horse-back. 
Weeds,  flowering  shrubs,  and  small  willows,  have  taken  root  upon 
the  surface  of  this  timber,  and  flourish  above  the  waters.  It  is  an 
impediment  of  incalculable  injury  to  the  navigation  of  this  noble  river, 
and  the  immense  extent  of  countrv  above  it.  There  is  probably  no 
part  of  the  United  Stales,  where  the  unoccupied  lands  have  higher 


renton 


MISSISSIPPI 
No.  15. 


HO  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

claims  from  soil,  climate,  intermixture  of  prairies  and  timbered  lands, 
position,  and  every  inducement  to  population,  than  the  country  above 
the  Raft ;  where  the  river  becomes  broad,  deep,  and  navigable  for 
steamboats,  in  moderate  stages  of  water,  for  nearly  one  thousand 
miles  toward  the  mountains.  The  state  of  Louisiana  has  made  an 
effort  to  have  it  removed,  and  the  general  government  have  made  an 
appropriation,  and  caused  an  inquiry  and  survey  to  be  made  for  the 
same  purpose.  The  valley  of  this  interesting  river  has  a  width  of 
throe  or  four  miles,  as  high  as  Kiamesia,  nearly  one  thousand  miles 
from  its  mouth.  It  broadens  as  it  slopes  toward  the  Mississippi,  and 
has,  for  a  long  distance  from  its  mouth,  a  valley  from  six  to  eighteen 
miles  in  width.  Of  all  the  broad  and  fertile  alluvials  of  the  Missis- 
sippi streams,  no  one  exceeds  this.  It  compares  in  many  more  points, 
with  the  famous  Nile,  than  the  Mississippi,  to  which  that  river  has 
so  often  been  likened. 

"ALEXANDRIA  is  situated  on  the  south  bank  of  Red  River,  half 
a  mile  below  the  falls,  at  the  mouth  of  Bayou  Rapide,  seventy  miles 
by  land,  and  one  hundred  and  fifty  following  the  course  of  the  river, 
from  the  Mississippi.  It  is  the  seat  of  justice  for  the  parish,  has  a 
bank,  a  newspaper,  a  number  of  stores,  &c.  It  is  central  to  the  rich 
cotton  country  of  Bayous  Rapide,  Robert,  and  Bosuf. 

NATCHITOCHES  is  eighty  miles  above  Alexandria.  It  is  the 
lost  town  of  any  size  toward  the  south-western  frontiers  of  the  Uni- 
ted States.  The  Spanish  trade,  for  a  considerable  distance  into  the 
interior  of  the  Mexican  states,  centers  here ;  and  it  is  the  great  thor- 
oughfare for  people  going  to  a,id  returning  from  those  states.  It  is  a 
very  old  town,  having  been  established  above  one  hundred  years  ago. 
It  is  considerably  larger  than  Alexandria.  The  population  is  a  mix- 
ture of  American,  Spanish,  and  French.  It  is  at  present  a  growing 
place,  and  will  probably  one  day  become  the  largest  town  in  this 
country,  except  New  Orleans.  There  are  many  respectable  families 
here  ;  and  the  opulent  planters  have  houses  in  the  town,  for  the  sake  of 
society.  The  people  are  excessively  fond  of  balls  and  dancing.  It 
has  a  pleasant  society,  and  a  weekly  newspaper,  in  French  and  Eng- 
lish. The  relations  of  this  "place  with  the  immense  country  on  the 
river  above,  and  with  the  interior  of  the  Spanish  country,  must  ne- 
cessarily be  extended.  It  is  beautifully  situated  on  the  shore  of  the 
river,  and  extends  back  to  the  pine  blurts,  on  which  there  are  already 
some  handsome  houses.     It  is  at  the  head  of  steam-boat  navigation. 


sl 


This  place  has  experienced  the  successive  regimes  of  the  savages,  the 
Spanish,  French,  and  Americans,  and  has  had  its  war  dances,  fan- 
dangoes, French  balls,  and  American  frolics.  The  traces  of  the  an- 
cient grave-yard  are  almost  erased.  Indians,  Spanish,  French,  Amer- 
icans, Catholics,  and  Protestants,  lie  here  in  mingled  confusion. 

"  Two  or  three  leagues  west  of  Natchitoches,  is  the  ancient  Spanish 
town  of  ADA  YES.  We  can  see  no  where  in  the  United  States  so 
fair  a  sample  of  an  ancient  Spanish  town,  as  this.  The  houses  are 
of  the  construction  of  a  hundred  rears  ago.  A  little  old  church, 
with  three  or  four  bells,  some  of   fhem  cracked,  and  some  coarse 


m 


112  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

paintings,  give  the  church  an  air  in  keeping  with  the  town.     The  in- 
habitants are  all  Spanish." 

BAYOU  ATHCAFALAYA,  or  CHAFFALIAR,  as  it  is  generally 
called,  is  about  three  miles  below  Rod  river,  on  the  right.  At  high 
water,  there  is  considerable  of  a  draft  into  the  Chaffaliar. 

RACCOURCI  CUT-OFF,  ten  miles  below.  This  is  a  new  cut- 
off, which  has  been  made  in  April,  1848.  The  river  bends  around  a 
distance  of  about  twenty  miles.  The  cut-off  was  made  across  the 
neck  of  the  bend,  and  is  about  half  a  mile  long— thus  shortening 
the  distance  of  the  river  nearly  twenty  miles. 

BAYOU  SARA,  thirty  miles  below,  in  Louisiana,  is  a  noted  placo- 
for  descending  boats,  and  great  quantities  of  cotton  are  shipped  down 
it.  The  country  through  which  it  runs  is  rich,  thickly  settled,  and 
well  cultivated. 

ST.  FRANCISVILLE,  a  short  distance  below,  is  the  county-seat  of 
West  Feliciana  parish,  Louisiana,  and  is  a  place  of  considerable 
trade.  A  portion  of  the  town  is  built  on  the  plain,  along  the  river, 
but  the  greater  part  is  on  a  beautiful  hill,  immediately  back.  There 
are  several  extensive  warehouses  and  stores  fronting  on  the  river,  and 
here,  also,  is  the  depot  for  the  rail  road,  running  to  Woodville,  Mis- 
sissippi, by  which,  immense  quantities  of  cotton  are  brought  from  the 
plantations  in  the  interior.  That  portion  of  the  town  on  the  hill,  is 
beautifully  situated,  and  contains  many  fine  buildings.  The  popu- 
lation is  about  one  thousand  five  hundred. 

POINT  COUPEE,  on  the  opposite  side,  is  a  wealthy  French  set- 
tlement, extending  some  miles  along  the  river. 

WATERLOO,  six  miles  below,  is  a  very  beautiful  settlement,  sit- 
uated in  the  midst  of  fine  plantations.  Population,  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty. 

PORT  HUDSON,  five  miles  below,  is  a  small  place,  situated  on 
the  White  Cliffs. 

THOMAS'S  POINT,  thirteen  miles  below. 

BATON  ROUGE,  twelve  miles  below,  situated  in  East  Baton 
Rouge  parish,  is  the  capital  of  Louisiana.  It  is  handsomely  situated 
on  the  last  bluff  that  is  seen,  in  descending  the  river.  The  site  is 
thirty  or  forty  feet  above  the  highest 'overflow  of  the  river.  The 
bluff  rises  from  the  river  by  a  gentle  and  gradual  swell,  and  the  town, 
as  seen  from  the  river,  in  the  months  when  the  greatest  verdure  pre- 
vails, rising  so  regularly  and  beautifully  from  the  banks,  with  its  sin- 
gularly shaped  French  and  Spanish  houses,  and  its  green  squares, 
looks  like  a  finely  painted  landscape.  It  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
and  pleasantly  situated  places  on  the  lower  Mississippi. 

The  U.  S.  Government  has  here  an  extensive  arsenal,  with  bat- 
racks  for  four  hundred  soldiers,  and  a  fine  hospital.  The  barracks 
are  built  in  fine  style,  and  present  a  handsome  appearance  from  the 


a 


Point  Coupee. 


114  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

river.  From  the  esplanade,  the  prospect  is"  delightful,  commanding 
a  great  extent  of  the  coast,  with  its  handsome  houses  and  rich  culti- 
vation below,  and  an  extensive  view  of  the  back  country  at  the  east. 
There  is  here,  also,  a  land  office  of  the  United  States,  a  court 
house,  the  Penitentiary  of  the  State,  four  churches,  an  academy  and 
college,  and  a  splendid  building  is  now  in  course  of  erection,  for  a 
State  House.     The  population  is  about  three  thousand. 

BAYOU  MANCHAC.  or  IBERVILLE,  fifteen  miles  below,  is  an 
outlet  of  the  Mississippi,  on  the  east  side,  uniting  with  Amite  river, 
which  falls  into  lake  Maurepas.  It  is  navigable  for  small  vessels, 
only  three  months  in  the  year. 

IBERVILLE,  a  small  town  in  Iberville  parish. 

BAYOU  PLACQUEMINE,  eight  miles  below,  on  the  righ't  side, 
affords  the  best  communication  to  the  rich  settlements  of  Attakapas 
and  Opelousas.  It  is  navigable  for  small  vessels,  for  some  miles  in 
the  interior,  and  its  banks  are  lined  with  splendid  sugar  and  cotton 
plantations. 

PLACQUEMINE,  just  below,  is  a  beautiful  town,  with  some  fine 
houses.  Considerable  trade  with  the  surrounding  plantations  is  car- 
ried on  here.     It  contains  a  population  of  about  six  hundred. 

CHURCH  OF  ST.  GABRIEL  (commonly  called  Manchac  church), 
ten  miles  below,  on  the  left. 

BAYOU  LA  FOURCHE,  twenty-four  miles  below,  on  the  right. 
This  bayou  is  well  settled,  on  both  sides,  for  nearly  thirty  leagues. 
It  affords  another  communication  to  the  Attakapas  and  Opelousas  set- 
tlements. 

DONALDSONVILLE,  just  below  the  mouth  of  the  bayou,  was  the 
former  capital  of  the  state  of  Louisiana.  It  is  the  seat  of  justice  for 
Ascension  parish.  The  place  is  very  pleasantly  located,  and  has 
some  fine  buildings,  among  which  are  the  court  house,  U.  S.  arsenal, 
State  House,  U.  S.  land  office,  &c.  It  is  a  place  of  considerable 
trade  and  wealth,  and  while  the  capital  remained  there,  was  improv- 
ing rapidly.  The  removal  of  that  to  Baton  Rouge  will,  of  course, 
operate  much  against  the  prosperity  of  the  place.  The  population  is 
about  one  thousand  two  hundred. 

CONTRELLE  CHURCH,  seventeen  miles  below,  on  left  side. 

BONNET  QUARRE  CHURCH,  twenty-four  miles  below,  on 
right  side. 

RED  CHURCH,  sixteen  miles  below,  on  left  side. 
These  three  latter  places  are  churches,  with  considerable  settle- 
ments around  them,  situated  on  fine  plantations. 

CARROLTON,  nineteen  miles  below,  is  a  very  thriving  place,  and 
rapidly  improving.     It  is  the  residence  of  many  business  men  of  New; 


W.  Baton  Rouge, 


116  THE    MISSISSIPPI    EiVER. 

Orleans,  from  which  place,  a  distance  of  seven  miles,  there  is  a  raii 
road,  with  good  passenger  cars  running  every  few  minutes  in  the  day 
and  evening.  There  is,  at  Carrolton,  a  most  beautiful  public  garden, 
laid  out  in  fine  taste,  and  a  hotel  attached,  with  ample  accommoda- 
tions for  visitors.  This  is  the  daily  resort  of  hundreds  from  the  city, 
during  the  spring,  summer  and  fall  months,  and  affords  a  most  agree- 
able treat  for  all,  from  the  heat  and  bustle  of  the  city.  Here,  among 
beautiful  flowers,  thick  shrubbery,  and  finely  laid  out  walks  and  ar- 
bors, with  the  thick  branches  of  green  trees  filled  with  the  innume- 
rable bright  plumaged  and  melodious  singing  birds  of  the  south,  one 
may  spend  a  day,  almost  oblivious  of  the  near  vicinity  of  that  great 
city,  with  its  thousands  of  inhabitants,  gathered  from  all  countries 
under  the  sun.     The  population  of  Carrolton  is  about  one  thousand. 

NEW  ORLEANS,  seven  miles  below,  in  the  great  bend  of  the 
Mississippi,  which  is  here  in  the  shape  of  a  crescent,  is  the  principal 
city  in  the  south,  and  the  third  commercial  mart  of  the  United  States. 
The  city  stands  on  a  level,  marshy  piece  of  ground,  about  from  two 
to  four  feet  below  the  level  of  the  river,  at  high  water  mark,  which  is 
prevented  from  overflowing,  by  a  levee,  or  embankment.  A  traveler 
is  struck,  on  entering  the  city,  "  with  the  old  and  narrow  streets,  the 
high  houses,  ornamented  with  tasteful  cornices,  iron  balconies,  and 
many  other  circumstances,  peculiar  to  towns  in  France  and  Spain, 
and  pointing  out  the  past  history  of  this  city,  fated  to  change  its  mas- 
iers  so  often/'  The  newer  parts  of  the  city  are,  however,  built  more 
on  the  American  style,  the  streets  being  wide  and  regularly  laid  out. 
Many  of  the  dwellings  are  built  in  a  style  of  magnificence  and 
beauty,  that  will  rival  those  of  any  city — while  the  beautiful  grounds 
attached  to  them,  filled  with  the  luxuriant  foliage  of  the  south,  give 
to  them  an  air  of  comfort  and  ease,  which  are  seldom  enjoyed  in  a 
city.  There  are,  in  the  city,  six  public  squares,  laid  out  with  taste, 
inclosed  with  handsome  fencing,  and  adorned  with  a  variety  of  trees 
and  shrubbery.  These  afford  a  pleasant  retreat  from  the  heat  and 
glare  of  the  streets,  and  tend,  also,  to  improve  the  health  of  the  city. 
The  old  city  is  built  in  the  form  of  a  parallelogram.  The  city  consists 
of  this  part,  the  suburbs  of  St.  Mary's,  Annunciation,  and  La  Course, 
called  Fauxbourgs  (to  which  may  be  added,  also,  the  city  of  Lafay- 
ette), above  the  city,  and  the  suburbs  of  Marigney,  Dounois,  and  De- 
clouet,  below  the  city,  and  Treme  and  St.  John's,  in  the  rear.  The 
whole  city  is  divided  into  districts,  of  which  there  are  three,  called 
municipalities.  The  city,  including  the  fauxbourgs  and  La  Fayette, 
extends  along  the  bank  of  the  river  five  miles,  and  backward,  to  the 
distance  of  half  a  mile.  It  is  one  hundred  and  five  miles  from  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  is  easily  accessible,  at  all  times,  for  large  ships 
from  the  sea,  which  are  towed  up  by  steamboats.  New  Orleans  has, 
probably,  twice  as  much  boat  navigation  above  it,  as  any  other  city 
on  the  globe.  By  means  of  the  basin,  the  canal,  and  the  Bayou  St. 
John,  it  communicates  with  Lake  Ponchartrain,  with  the  Florida 
shore,  with  Mobile,  Pensacola,  and  the  whole  Gulf  shore.  It  also 
communicates,  by  means  of  the  bayous  Placquemine  and  La  Fourche, 
with  the  Attakapas  country,  and  has  many  other  communications,  by 


118  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

means  of  the  numerous  bayous  and  lakes,  with  the  lower  parts  of 
Louisiana.  Its  wharves  may  be  seen,  at  all  seasons  of  the  year,  lined 
with  all  kinds  of  craft,  rough  fiat-boats,  which  have  traveled  from 
the  Alleghanies,  with  lumber,  or  from  further  west,  with  provisions, 
&c.;  steamers,  from  the  hundred  navigable  rivers,  which  flow  into 
(he  Mississippi ;  ships  and  schooners,  from  all  quarters  of  the  globe, 
here  meet,  to  land  the  productions  of  all  climes,  and  bring  together 
the  inhabitants  of  all  countries,  colors,  and  languages.  The  commerce 
of  New  Orleans  is  already  very  great,  and,  "if  we  can  read  aright,  it 
will  be  the  greatest  commercial  city  in  the  world,  when  time  shall 
have  fulfilled  the  promises  of  the  present,  and  every  acre  is  reclaimed 
from  the  dominion  of  the  forests  and  lakes  of  the  Mississippi  valley, 
and  made  available  for  cultivation.  Now,  when  this  great  event  is 
only  in  progress  of  realization,  its  commerce  is  gigantic:  how  im- 
mensely great  must  it  be  on  the  consummation  of  what  is  in  reserve." 
The  greater  part  of  the  business  is  transacted  during  the  months,  be- 
tween October  and  June.  Daring  the  summer,  the  city  is  generally 
unhealthy,  and  is  visited  by  that  scourge,  the  Yellow  Fever,  which 
carries  off  thousands  of  its  inhabitants.  This  has,  no  doubt,  retarded 
the  growth  of  the  city,  much  ;  but  may  it  not  be  entirely  overcome, 
in  a  few  years,  when  the  scientific  efforts,  which  are  now  being  used, 
to  dry  the  innumerable  swamps  in  its  vicinity,  shall  prove  successful? 
During  the  winter  and  spring,  the  climate  is  generally  reputed  healthy, 
and  thousands  Hock  here  from  ah  quarters  of  the  world — some  for 
health,  others  for  pleasure,  and  still  more  in  connection  with  the  im- 
mense business  of  all  kinds  which  is  here  transacted.  In  1841-2, 
the  property  imported  to  New  Orleans  was  estimated  at  $35,76-1,477. 
In  December,  1843,  there  were  six  hundred  ships  in  port  here,  at  one 
time,  taking  freight  from  all  parts  of  the  world.  The  exports  for  that 
year  are  estimated  at  $50,000,000.  In  1845,  the  value  of  imports 
from  the  interior  of  the  United  States,  alone,  was  estimated  at  $57,- 
199,122;  1846,  $77,193,204;  1847,  $90,033,256.  From  this,  some 
idea  may  be  formed  of  the  business  transactions  of  the  city.  The 
public  buildings  of  the  city  are  constructed,  many  of  them,  in  a  large 
and  beautiful  style.  The  new  custom  house,  now  in  course  of  erec- 
tion, on  the  site  occupied  by  the  old  one,  on  the  corner  of  Canal  street 
and  the  Levee,  will  be,  when  completed,  the  finest  building  of  the 
kind  in  the  United  States. 

Much  has  been  said  against  the  morals  4 I  New  Orleans.  But  here 
are  numerous  churches,  all  of  which  a*  as  well  attended  as  those 
of  any  city  in  the  Union.  The  police  is  acknowledged  to  be  the  most 
perfect  of  any  city  in  the  United  States,  and  the  perfect  stillness  and 
order,  which  pervade  the  city  at  night,  is  a  matter  of  observation  by 
all.  In  no  city,  of  the  same  extent,  is  the  protection  of  person  and 
property  more  complete  than  here.  In  point  of  public  charity,  it  may 
well  challenge  competition.  The  numerous  hospitals,  public  and  pri- 
vate, which  afford  comfort  and  assistance  to  the  sick  and  destitute, 
are  a  fine  commentary  on  the  benevolent  feelings  of  the  community. 
To  enumerate  all  the  places  of  interest  in  the  city,  would  be,  per- 
haps, too  tedious;  we  will  content,  ourselves  with  a  few  of  them: 
The  Cathedral  is  a  massive  building,  dating  back  to  1790.     In  its  ap- 


% 


120  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

pearance,  one  is  carried  back  to  a  date,  far  beyond  its  real  age.  It 
forcibly  calls  to  mind  some  of  the  old  cathedrals  in  European  lands, 
which  have  existed  for  ages.  The  Hospital  of  St.  Louis,  the  court 
House,  the  United  States'  Mint,  the  Post  Office,  the  Merchants'  Ex- 
change, the  Episcopal  Church,  on  Canal  street,  the  Barracks,  the  Char- 
ity Hospital,  the  Convent  of  Ursuline,  the  College  of  Orleans,  the  St. 
Charles  and  Orleans  Theaters,  the  St.  Charles  Hotel,  St.  Louis  Hotel, 
and  Verandah,  &,c,  are  all  splendid  buildings,  which  would  do  credit 
to  any  city. 

There  are  three  railroads  leading  from  the  city — one  intended  to  ex- 
tend to  Mobile,  twenty-five  miles  of  which  are  finished,  leading  past 
the  battle-ground  ;  one  to  Lake  Ponchartrain,  distance,  five  miles  ;  and 
the  other  to  the  Carrolton  gardens,  seven  miles.  All  these,  and  the 
fine  shell  road,  leading  to  Lake  Ponchartrain,  afford  fine  excursions  to 
those  who  wish  to  escape  a  few  hours  from  the  city.  Opposite  New 
Orleans,  and  connected  with  it  by  a  ferry,  is  the  town  of  Algiers,  the 
principal  workshop  of  the  city.  Here  are  several  extensive  ship- 
yards, and  numerous  artizans,  engaged  in  building  and  repairing  ves- 
sels. A  short  distance  above  it  is  the  United  States'  Marine  Hospital,  a 
splendid  building,  used  for  the  purpose  its  name  designates.  Not- 
withstanding the  reputed  unhealthiness  of  New  Orleans,  it  has  in- 
creased in  population  very  rapidly.  It  was  incorporated,  in  1804,  as 
a  city,  and,  in  L810,  had  a  population  of  seventeen  thousand  two 
hundred  and  forty-two;  in  1820,  twenty-seven  thousand  one  hun- 
dred and  seventy-six  ;  in  1830,  forty-six  thousand  three  hundred  and 
ten;  1835,  seventy  thousand,  exclusive  of  from  forty  to  fifty  thou- 
sand strangers,  during  the  winter ;  and,  at  present,  it  is  computed  to 
be  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand. 

The  cemeteries  of  New  Orleans  are  visited  by  almost  every  stran- 
ger who  remains  in  the  city  any  length  of  time.  There  are  several 
of  these,  which  are  laid  out  in  a  handsome  manner,  the  most  celebra- 
ted of  which  are  the  "  French  Cemetery"  in  the  city,  and  "  Cypress 
Grove  Cemetery,"  about  three  miles  out  on  the  Shell  road,  leading  to 
Lake  Ponchartrain.  The  taste'  and  elegance  displayed  in  many  of 
the  vaults,  and  the  constant  attention  manifested,  to  show  respect  for 
the  memory  of  departed  friends,  are  truly  gratifying  to  the  finer  feel- 
ings of  our  nature.  On  account  of  the  marshy  state  of  the  soil,  it  is 
impossible  to  dig  graves,  as  a  foot  below  the  surface,  they  would  be 
filled  with  water.  To  obviate  this,  the  tombs  are  built  entirely  above 
ground,  and  well  cemented,  with  apertures  just  large  enough  for  a 
single  coffin,  and  rising  up,  in  many  instances,  to  the  the  height  of 
three  or  four  tiers.  In  some  cases,  these  are  encased  in  a  marble  wall, 
and  in  others  stuccoed,  as  it  may  suit  the  taste  and  means  of  surviv- 
ing friends.  The  walks  between  the  vaults  are  covered  with  beau- 
tiful white  shells,  from  the  sea  beach ;  and  along  the  edges  of  them 
may  be  found  almost  every  variety  of  shrubbery  and  flowers,  which 
grow  so  luxuriantly  in  the  south.  These  cemeteries  are  free  to  all 
visitors ;  and  none  who  visit  the  "  Crescent  City,"  should  fail  to  pay  a 
visit  to  these  "cities  of  the  dead."  The  early  history  of  New  Or- 
leans, and  its  connection  with  the  discovery  and  settlement  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi valley,  is  a  very  interesting  item,  in  the  history  of  our  country'. 


Battle-ground 


122  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

In  1718  (Louisiana  then  being  under  the  dominion  of  the  French), 
colonics  were  sent  from  Europe,  who  laid  out  New  Orleans  with 
great  ceremony.  This  colony  was  under  the  direction  of  John  Law, 
the  noted  financier.  The  Mississippi  company,  under  Law,  received 
their  charter  in  1717,  and  it  granted  them  the  exclusive  right  of 
trading  in  the  Mississippi  country,  for  twenty-five  years,  with  the  mo- 
nopoly of  the  Canada  beaver  trade.  In  171S,  the  monopoly  of 
trading  in  tobacco  was  also  granted  them.  In  1719,  the  exclusive 
right  of  trading  in  Asia  and  the  East  Indies,  and,  soon  after,  the  farm- 
ing of  the  public  revenue,  together  with  the  extension  of  all  these 
rights  to  the  year  1770 — and,  also,  the  exclusive  right  of  coining  for 
nine  years.  They  also  had  the  grant,  formerly  given  to  Crozat,  but 
resigned  by  him,  of  an  exclusive  monopoly  of  Louisiana,  for  fifteen 
years,  and  the  absolute  ownership  of  whatever  mines  might  be 
opened,  for  this  was,  in  fact,  the  great  object  of  all  the  explorers  of 
the  Mississippi  country.  They  relied,  not  so  much  on  the  fertility  of 
the  soil,  as  the  immense  wealth  that  would  be  realized  from  the  rich 
mines  of  precious  metals,  which  they  hoped  to  find.  In  1717,  about 
two  thousand  subjects  of  the  Western  Duchy  embarked  from  Europe, 
under  the  direction  of  the  company.  In  1720,  the  company  failed, 
and  the  Germans,  thus  deserted,  dispersed  into  different  portions  of 
the  country.  Large  sums  were  advanced  by  the  crown  to  uphold  the 
company,  and  much  expended  for  military  protection  against  the  In- 
dians. But  all  failed  to  keep  it  up.  In  1731,  the  government  ob- 
tained a  judgment  against  them,  of  twenty  millions  of  francs,  to  cancel 
which,  the  entire  property  and  privileges  were  re-conveyed.  In  1721, 
the  Council  General  was  removed  from  Biloxi  to  New  Orleans.  In 
January,  1722,  Charlevoix,  writing  from  New  Orleans,  says :  <:If 
the  eight  hundred  fine  houses,  and  the  five  parishes,  that  were,  two 
years  since,  represented  by  the  journals  as  existing  here,  shrink  now 
to  a  hundred  huts,  built  without  order;  a  large  wooden  magazine; 
two  or  three  houses,  that  would  do  but  little  credit  to  a  French  vil- 
lage: and  half  of  an  old  store  house,  which  was  to  have  been  occu- 
pied as  a  chapel,  but  from  which  the  priests  soon  retreated  to  a  tent, 
as  preferable — if  all  this  is  so,  still,  how  pleasant  to  think  of  what 
this  city  will  one  day  be,  and,  instead  of  weeping  over  its  decay  and 
ruin,  to  look  forward  to  its  growth  to  opulence  and  power."  "  The 
best  idea  you  can  form  of  New  Orleans,  is  to  imagine  two  hundred 
persons,  sent  to  build  a  city,  but  who  have  encamped  on  the  river 
bank,  just  sheltered  from  the  weather,  and  waiting  for  houses.  They 
have  a  beautiful  and  regular  plan  for  this  metropolis  ;  but.  it  will 
prove  harder  to  execute  than  to  draw." 

For  many  years  after,  the  colony  thrived  but  slowly.  In  April, 
1763,  France,  by  a  secret  treaty,  ceded  Louisiana  to  Spain.  Of  this. 
the  French  on  the  Mississippi,  were  not  informed  for  more  than  a 
year  afterward.  Five  years  after,  the  Spanish  captain-general,  Don 
Antonio  D'Ulloa,  arrived.  The  colony  was  so  much  dissatisfied  at 
the  transfer,  that  the  successor  of  D'Ulloa,  O'Reilly,  deemed  it  neces- 
sary, for  the  preservation  of  peace,  to  have  three  thousand  troops  at 
New  Orleans,  and  six  of  the  principal  citizens  were  hung,  and  five 
officers  of  the  crown  shot.     In  17C5,  many  of  the  inhabitants  aban- 


Johnsons  tJ  = 


MISSISSIPPI 
No.  23 

Fort  St.  Phillip 


124  THE    MISSISSIPPI  RIVER. 

doned  the  city,  and  retired  to  St.  Domingo,  preferring  to  obey  the  laws 
and  customs  of  France,  rather  than  of  Spain.  In  1769,  the  city  was 
first  scourged  by  the  Yellow  Fever.  In  1778,  a  fire  broke  out,  by 
which  nearly  one  thousand  houses  were  destroyed.  In  1785,  the 
population  was  four  thousand  seven  hundred  and  eighty.  In  1795, 
the  King  of  Spain  permitted  New  Orleans  to  become  a  depot  for 
American  produce,  for  three  years,  and  it  continued,  by  mutual  con- 
sent, until  October  16th,  1802.  On  the  1st  of  October,  1800,  a  treaty 
was  signed  at  St.  Ildefonso,  between  France  and  Spain,  by  which 
Louisiana  was  to  bo  conveyed  to  Napoleon.  This  was  confirmed, 
and  reiterated  in  the  treaty  of  Madrid,  March  21st,  1801.  France 
thus  became  master,  a  second  time,  of  this  territory. 

Buonaparte,  to  prevent  the  English  from  making  a  conquest  of 
this  territory,  determined  to  sell  it  to  the  United  States.  Without  any 
knowledge  of  this  intention,  President  Jefferson  despatched  Mr.  Mon- 
roe, to  negotiate  for  the  island  of  Orleans. 

On  arriving  in  France,  Mr.  Monroe  was  surprised  to  learn  that  the 
French  determined  to  sell  the  whole  of  Louisiana  ;  and  the  only  mat- 
ter to  be  settled  was  the  amount  to  be  paid  for  it.  On  the  30th  of 
April,  1803,  the  treaty  of  cession  was  signed  by  the  commissioners, 
by  which,  the  United  States  gave  eighty  millions  of  francs,  for  the 
territory,  deducting  twenty  millions  for  spoliations  upon  our  commerce. 
When  the  deeds  of  transfer  were  signed,  the  Commissioners,  Barbii 
Marbois,  Mr.  Livingston,  and  Mr.  Monroe,  were  so  transported  with 
joy,  that  they  rose,  and  grasped  each  others  hands  with  the  utmost 
enthusiasm.  Mr.  Livingston  is  said  to  have  exclaimed — "  We  have 
lived  long,  but  this  is  the  noblest  work  of  our  lives.  The  treaty 
which  we  have  just  signed,  has  not  been  obtained  by  art,  nor  dic- 
tated by  force.  Equally  advantageous  to  both  parties,  it  will  change 
vast  solitudes  into  flourishing  districts.  The  United  States  will  re- 
establish the  maritime  rights  of  all  the  world,  now  usurped  by  a  sin- 
gle nation.  The  instruments  we  have  just  signed,  will  cause  no 
tears  to  be  shed.  They  prepare  ages  of  happiness  for  innumerable 
generations  of  human  creatures."  Napoleon,  with  his  own  hand, 
drew  up  articles,  guaranteeing  protection  to  property,  and  the  enjoy- 
ment of  liberty  and  a  free  religion.  In  the  conclusion  of  it,  he  says : 
"  Let  the  Louisianians  know,  that  we  separate  ourselves  from  them 
with  regret;  that  we  stipulate  in  their  favor,  every  thing  which  they 
can  desire ;  and  let  them,  hereafter,  happy  in  their  independence,  re- 
collect that  they  have  been  Frenchmen,  and  that  France,  in  ceding 
them,  has  secured  for  them  advantages,  which  they  could  not  obtain 
from  an  European  power,  however  paternal  it  might  have  been.  Let 
them  retain  for  us  sentiments  of  affection ;  and  may  their  common 
origin,  descent,  langunge,  and  customs,  perpetuate  the  friendship." 
"  The  Spaniards  were  now  required  to  execute  the  treaty  of  St.  Ilde- 
fonso. They,  accordingly,  delivered  the  forts  and  posts  on  the  Mis- 
sissippi, to  Monsieur  Laussat  and  his  agents,  on  the  30th  of  Novem- 
ber, 1803.  The  reign  of  France  was  short  and  provisional.  On  the 
26th  of  December,  the  French  Prefect,  the  American  Governor,  Clai- 
borne, and  General  Wilkinson,  commanding  the  United  States'  troops, 
who  had  entered  the  city,  as  the  Spaniards  embarked,  assembled  at 


126  THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

the  City  Hall.     Laussat  made  a  formal  transfer  of  the  province,  and 
Claiborne  received  it,  in  execution  of  the  treaty. 

"  While  this  ceremony  was  passing  in  the  Hall,  the  American  flag 
was  brought  to  the  foot  of  the  flag-staff,  at  the  top  of  which  floated 
the  colors  of  France.  As  one  rose,  the  other  descended,  and,  meet- 
ing midway,  remained  some  moments,  mutually  entwined.  When 
the  flag  of  the  Union  rose  in  the  air,  the  Americans  could  no  longer 
suppress  their  shouts  of  joy ;  but  the  French  guard,  alive  to  the 
scene,  expressed  the  deepest  regrets,  and,  as  a  last  homage  to  the  il- 
lustrious banner  of  their  country,  the  leader  wrapped  it  around  his 
body,  and  paraded  the  streets,  at  the  head  of  his  troops,  and,  finally, 
deposited  this  symbol  of  the  power  and  glory  of  France,  with  the 
iate  Prefect,  M.  Laussat." 

On  the  20th  of  May,  Congress  divided  the  territory  of  Louisiana 
into  two  territories,  attaching  the  upper  part  to  Indiana.  On  the  20th 
of  January,  1812,  the  State  of  Louisiana  was  formed,  by  adopting  a 
republican  constitution. 

In  August,  1814,  Col.  Nichols,  the  British  commandant  at  Pensa- 
cola.  issued  an  address  to  the  citizens  of  Louisiana  and  Kentucky, 
stating  that  he  was  at  the  head  of  a  large  body  of  Indians,' &c,  com- 
manded by  British  officers,  with  a  large  train  of  artillery,  seconded 
by  a  numerous  squadron  of  British  and  Spanish  ships,  and  vessels 
of  war ;  and  calling  upon  all  to  second  him  in  his  efforts  in  crushing 
the  Americans — -giving  notice,  that  a  flag  over  any  door,  Spanish, 
French,  or  British,  would  be  a  certain  protection". 

Shortly  after  this  became  known,  on  the  15th  of  September,  a 
meeting  of  the  citizens  of  New  Orleans  was  held,  and  they  deter- 
mined to  support,  to  the  extent  of  their  abilities,  the  authority  of  the 
government,  and  the  honor  of  the  American  arms.  A  committee  of 
safety  was  appointed  to  assist  the  Governor,  in  providing  the  neces- 
sary measures  for  the  defense  of  the  city,  and  a  proclamation  issued 
to  the  citizens.  On  the  21st  of  September,  a  proclamation  was  issued 
by  Genl.  Jackson,  calling  upon  them  to  assist  in  defending  their  coun- 
try, and  to  form  a  battalion,  or  regiment,  of  their  own,  for  this  pur- 
pose. This  was,  accordingly,  done,  and  the  command  of  it  given  to 
Major  Daguin,  a  highly  respectable  citizen  of  New  Orleans.  On  the 
9th  of  December,  Genl.  Jackson  arrived  at  the  city,  from  the  inspec- 
tion of  Fort  St.  Philip,  and,  in  connection  with  Governor  Claiborne, 
invited  the  co-operation  of  the  Legislature,  in  fortifying  the  city. 
Pursuant  to  his  recommendation,  the  Legislature  instructed  the  Gov- 
ernor to  call  into  public  service,  for  this  purpose,  the  negroes  of  the  par- 
ishes of  Placquemine.  St.  Bernard,  St.  Charles,  and  St.  John  the  Baptist. 
On  the  5th  of  December,  a  British  fleet,  of  eighty  vessels,  appeared 
off  Pensacola  fort.  On  the  9th,  two  of  these  vessels  were  discovered, 
steering  toward  Lake  Borgne.  On  the  14th,  an  engagement  took 
place,  between  five  of  the  American  vessels,  and  forty  n>e  of  the 
British  boats,  in  which  the  British  lost  several  boats,  and  about  three 
hundred  killed  and  wounded.  The  loss  of  the  Americans  was  six 
killed  and  ihirty-five  wounded.  The  contest  lasted  for  over  two 
hours,  and  the  Americans  only  surrendered,  when  the  enemy  had 
gained  their  decks,  and  overpowered  them  by  numbers. 


THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER  *  127 

On  the  15th,  Gen  Jackson  reviewed  the  troops  at  New  Orleans,  and 
addressed  them  in  language  calculated  to  arouse  all  their  ardor  and 
patriotism.  At  this  time,  the  Legislature,  was  in  session  in  the  city, 
and,  to  prevent  communication  with  the  enemy,  and  the  protection 
of  spies  and  traitors,  with  whom  the  country  was  filled,  he  applied 
for  a  suspension  of  the  act  of  habeas  corpus.  This  proposition  was 
rejected.  On  the  16th,  he  suspended  their  councils,  by  declaring  the 
city  and  its  environs  under  martial  law;  and  required  every  person 
entering  the  city,  to  report  himself  to  the  Adjutant  General,  tinder 
penalty  of  arrest,  and  permitted  none  to  depart  from  it,  or  pass  beyond 
the  chain  of  sentinels,  but  by  permission  of  the  commanding  General, 
or  one  of  his  staff'. 

A  few  days  after,  Judge  Hall,  by  a  habeas  corpus,  undertook  to  in- 
terfere with  a  military  arrest.  General  Jackson  immediately  ordered 
him  beyond  the  camp.  For  this  act,  on  the  return  of  peace,  ihe 
Judge  imposed  a  fine  of  one  thousand  dollars  on  the  General.  The 
ladies  of  New  Orleans  raised  the  money,  and  tendered  it  to  him,  to 
discharge  the  fine  ;  but  he  refused,  and  ordered  that  it  be  distributed 
among  the  widows  and  orphans  of  those  who  had  fallen  in  battle. 
Tins  fine  was  subsequently  repaid  him  by  Congress. 

On  the  morning  of  December  23d,  the  enemy  effected  a  landing 
at  the  junction  of  Bayou  Bienvenu  and  Lake  Borgne,  surprised  the 
guard  there  stationed,  and  hastened  forward  toward  the  Mississippi. 
This  they  reached,  about  nine  miles  below  New  Orleans.  Genl.  Jack- 
son determined  to  attack  them  that  night.  Having  formed  a  junction 
with  Col.  Hayne,  he  learned  from  him  the  position  of  the  invaders, 
and  a  plan  of  attack  was  instantly  concerted.  Commodore  Patterson 
was  directed  to  open  upon  them  from  the  schooners,  which  was  to  be 
followed  by  a  battle,  was;ed  on  all  sides.  The  astonishment  and  con- 
fusion of  the  British,  when  attacked  by  the  Caroline,  cannot  be  de- 
scribed. The  Americans  troops  did  not  amount  to  two  thousand  ; 
while  those  of  the  British  were  four  or  live  thousand.  Of  the  Ameri- 
cans, twenty-four  were  killed,  one  hundred  and  fifteen  wounded,  and 
seventy-four  made  prisoners.  The  killed,  wounded  and  prisoners  of 
the  British,  amounted  to  nearly  four  hundred.  About  four  o'clock  in 
the  morning  the  Americans  withdrew,  not  thinking  it  prudent  to  haz- 
ard a  fight,  by  day,  against  such  great  odds.  This  battle  saved  New 
Orleans,  as  it  prevented,  entirely,  the  progress  upon  the  city,  which 
the  British  confidently  thought  they  would  be  able  to  make,  with- 
out a  successful  resistance.  Frequent  skirmishes  took  place,  during 
Several  succeeding  days,  between  advanced  parties  of  the  two  ar- 
mies ;   but  without  great  loss  on  either  side. 

Both  armies,  about  the  30th  of  December,  commenced  vigorous 
preparations  for  a  battle,  on  a  swampy  piece  of  ground,  called  the 
l<  Plains  of  Chalmelte"  about  six  miles  below  the  city.  Both  were 
waiting,  with  great  anxiety,  for  reinforcements.  On  the  4th  of  Jan- 
uary, the  reinforcement  from  Kentucky,  amounting  to  two  thousand 
two  hundred  and  fifty  men,  under  the  command  of  Major  General 
Thomas,  arrived;  but  they  were  illy  provided  with  arms. 

Information  was  also  received,  that  Major  General  Lambert,  with  a 
considerable  reinforcement,  had  joined  General  Packenham. 


128 


THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 


The  position  of  the  American  army  was  in  the  rear  of  an  intrench- 
ment,  formed  of  earth,  and  which  extended,  in  a  straight  line,  from 
the  river  to  a  considerable  distance  within  the  swamp.  Cotton  bags 
were  made  use  of,  to  strengthen  and  defend  the  embrasures  along 
the  line. 

For  six  days  had  the  two  armies  laid  on  the  same  field,  and  in  full 
view  of  each  other,  without  any  decisive  movements  being  effected. 
The  hum  of  preparation  was  still  going  on,  each  determined  to  gather 
up  all  their  strength,  for  a  decisive  and  final  struggle.  On  Sunday 
morning,  the  8th  of  January,  the  signal  of  the  enemy,  for  concert  in 
their  movements,  was  descried,  and  instantly  their  charge  was  made, 
mid  the  fire  opened  with  heavy  cannon,  and  showers  of  bombs  and 
balls  poured  on  the  American  army.  The  two  divisions  under  com- 
mand of  Sir  Edward  Packenham,  supported  by  Generals  Keane  and 
Gibbs,  pressed  forward.  Slowly  and  steadily  the  columns  advanced 
toward  the  American  line.  Behind  their  parapets,  all  was  silent,  un- 
til the  British  army  had  reached  a  convenient  distance,  when  a  deadly 
fire  was  poured  into  them,  from  the  long  line  of  the  Americans,  which 
mowed  them  down  by  hundreds. 

A  few  of  them  pressed  forward  through  the  deadly  fire ;  but  the 
army  was  wavering,  and  thinking  of  flight — when  Sir  Edward  Pack- 
enham hastened  to  the  front,  to  encourage  and  inspire  them  with 
zeal.  He  soon  fell,  mortally  wounded.  Generals  Gibbs  and  Keane 
also  fell,  and  were  borne  from  the  field,  dangerously  wounded,  and 
the  army  precipitately  retreated.  The  battle  continued,  at  different 
points,  for  upward  of  one  hour,  when  the  enemy  were  cut  to  pieces, 
to  a  degree  almost  unprecedented,  and  fled  in  confusion,  leaving  their 
dead  and  wounded  on  the  field  of  battle.  The  loss  of  the  British 
was  seven  hundred  killed,  fourteen  hundred  wounded,  and  five  hun- 
dred taken  prisoners — making  a  total  of  two  thousand  six  hundred. 
The  American  loss  in  the  engagement  was  seven  killed  and  six 
wounded.  The  attack  was  not  renewed,  and,  shortly  after,  the  Brit- 
ish left  the  coast. 

Thus  was  New  Orleans  preserved  from  the  attack  of  that  army, 
whose  cry,  in  marching  to  its  attack,  was  "  Beauty  and  Booty." 

The  battle-ground  presents  no  particular  attraction  in  its  appearance, 
being  a  low  swampy  piece  of  ground,  and  pretty  nearly  in  the  situa- 
tion in  which  it  was  before  the  battle.  It  is  a  spot,  however,  which 
will  always  be  interesting  to  every  American,  from  the  glorious  strug- 
gle there  made  by  his  countrymen,  against  an  invading  foe.  It  forms 
an  almost  classic  spot,  where  one  may  gaze,  and  recall  to  mind  acts 
of  noble  heroism,  that  would  dignify  the  most  glorious  battle-fields 
of  the  world. 

Table  of  Distances  from  St  Anthony's  Falls  to  Galena. 


Fort  Snelling,  Minnesota  Ter., 

Si.  Peters, 

St.  Paul, 

Little  Crow  Village  (Presbyterian  Mission), 

Red  Rock  Prairie, 

Gray  (JloUd  Island, 

Point  Douglas,  and  Mouth  of  St.  Croix  River, 

.Stillwater  (up  St.  Croix),  30  miles. 

Red  Wing  Village, 

Lake  Pippen, 

Chippeway  River, 

Nelson's  Landing,  Wisconsin, 

Oratt's         do.    ~    Minnesota, 

Hone's         do.         Wis., 

Wabashaw's  Prairie,  and  Village,  Iowa, 


7  Mount  Trombabe,  Wisconsin,  15 

1  Prairie  La  Cross  (Mouth  of  Black  River),  Wis.,  25 

6  Winnashlk  (Trading  Post),  50 

4  Camel  Isle  Bluff,  10 
11  Praine  DuChien,  Wis.,  30 

5  Fort  Crawford,  1 
15  Wisconsin  River,  3 

Gottenburgh,  Iowa,  15 

30  Prairie  La  Porte,  Iowa,  6 

10  Oassville,  Wis,,  10 

25  Perue,  Iowa,  and  Siniper,  Wis.,  23 

1  Pouisi,  Wis.,  18 

2  Dubuque,  Iowa,  12 
38  Fever  River,  29 
10  Galena,  HI.,  7  miles  up  Fever  River, 


